


Eidolon Interloper

by HeroineofTime



Category: Danny Phantom, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
Genre: Adventure, Crossover, Enemies to Friends, Gen, Minor Character Death, Misunderstandings, Secret Identity, ghost language, ghost speak, headcanons, way more attention to lore than strictly necessary
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-30
Updated: 2021-03-01
Packaged: 2021-03-02 20:14:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 50,414
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24452716
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HeroineofTime/pseuds/HeroineofTime
Summary: Within his first hour of falling through that stupid portal, Danny was faced with a dark sacrificial ritual, two evil beasts with shields for heads, and an imp riding a wolf. He was not having a great day.
Comments: 224
Kudos: 348





	1. Chapter 1

The sobs of the young girl echoed throughout the empty halls of Hyrule Castle. The King of Twilight, Zant, stared down at her in distaste as she was wrestled onto the pedestal in front of him by two Shadow Beasts. The Hylian girl was merely a spirit, just like all of the other clueless humans in the town he had shrouded in Twilight. Unlike his own superior Twili race, humans could not survive within the Twilight without reverting to formless shades of themselves. Only creatures of Twilight and other spirits could touch them.

If he could have avoided it, he would have loved to ignore the foolish Hyrulians completely and focus his efforts on stealing the light from the remaining Light Spirits, spreading his empire to the few corners of Hyrule still free from his shadows. He wanted nothing to do with these sniveling creatures of the Light World. However, today he was on a vital mission, one given to him directly from his god.

Master was rather displeased about being unable to find some old adversaries of his. According to him, these “Sages” were missing, and the all-powerful being that granted him power wanted them found. Zant was not one to question his liege but he suspected that these sages were somehow involved in his god’s banishment to the Twilight Realm. Zant was pleased to have been given a task that would help in finding and getting revenge on the fools that dared to challenge Master’s power.

Unfortunately, his god believed that these Sages could be hiding in a legendary realm known as the Sacred Realm, which was incredibly difficult to reach. Zant had scoured the Hyrulian Royal Library for any spells that might be able to get him into this mysterious realm. It took ages, but he finally came across a potentially promising ritual. It required the descendants of those who had sealed up the realms—a descendant of the sages themselves. Luckily, the castle’s historians had also kept record of the lineages of these sages, and he was able to locate one of these descendants in mere hours and bring them to the castle.

He sneered as the girl whimpered in front of him. What a pathetic creature. Nonetheless, she would serve her purpose as an essential component of the ritual. He allowed himself to feel some excitement; it had been far too long since he’d had the opportunity to commit magic of this caliber.

Zant summoned dark power to his fingertips. The ritual was rather clear on what needed to happen to this descendant.

Chanting the incantation, Zant raised his arm and shot the dark power at the girl’s body. The magic was heedless of her intangible state and rushed through her body, leaving her shrieking in horror. He could not stop the satisfied smirk that sprung to his face as pained wails filled the room. Finally, the screams dwindled and Zant released his spell, watching the girl’s form drop lifeless to the pedestal.

At first, nothing happened, causing the usurper king to frown. He was certain that this ritual would open some sort of gateway to this alternate realm.

But then, sure enough, a glowing green portal appeared above the Hylian girl’s body. Zant laughed darkly, stepping forward, eager to find the Sages and destroy them in the name of his god.

…The last thing he expected was for a glowing teenager garbed in black to come shooting out of the portal and crash into the wall behind him.

oOoOo

Danny was having a rough day. After arriving late to school courtesy of the Box Ghost (who had raided a moving company and was throwing boxes onto the streets, and Sam insisted that _someone_ needed to stop that monster from littering), he’d failed a quiz in first period math (which, of course, he couldn’t study for thanks to Klemper deciding 3AM was a reasonable time to try and make new friends), then he’d been assigned partners with Dash in chemistry (which led to him not only learning absolutely nothing but also going to his next period with new bruises), and then no less than _four_ ghosts had interrupted his lunch and subsequent gym class. When he arrived home, he was prepared to do nothing less than collapse on his bed and ignore all of the homework he’d gotten for the day and hopefully catch up on some sleep.

Of course, that was when his ghost sense decided to go off.

Groaning, Danny had transformed and found Skulker in his parents’ lab, stealing one of their weapons. Danny had no idea what weapon it was or what it did, but he was pretty sure he didn’t want Skulker anywhere near it (and probably didn’t want the weapon anywhere near him, either). He’d chased Skulker into the Ghost Zone, exchanging blows and the traditional witty banter, when one of Skulker’s blasts had sent him flying backwards… into a Ghost Portal that had suddenly opened up.

Danny had crashed into a wall on the other side of the portal. Shaking his head to clear it, he stood up, preparing to jump straight back through—

Only in time to see the portal close in front of him.

Great.

“Who are you?” a deep, slightly muffled voice demanded.

Danny blinked, taking in his surroundings full for the first time and noticing… some extremely strange people in the room. If you could call them people. Two dark, twisted monsters with enormous shield-like heads were situated to his right, their unnaturally long limbs highlighting their inhuman stature. And in front of them was a tall, imposing figure dressed in elaborate armor and a bug-eyed stone helmet.

“Did Halloween come early?” he mumbled, glancing around. The room was completely made of stone, with a single wooden door opposite him and a small window without glass on the left. Outside of the window he saw several rooftops and towers, shadowed against a sunset-laden sky; it seemed like he was quite high up in an old-fashioned stone building. It actually reminded him a bit of the level he and Tucker had completed in Doomed a couple nights ago that involved running across castle rooftops.

And then, his gaze moved to the center of the room—where he noticed the unmoving body of a young girl on a raised pedestal, blackened wounds visible beneath singed clothes.

“Wh-What happened to her? Did you do this?” he gasped, unable to stop the wavering in his voice as his stomach churned. He’d heard, from other denizens of the Ghost Zone, of cults that would sacrifice human lives in hope of gaining favor from powerful beings within the Infinite Realms. He’d never thought they were real, nor that he would somehow be the one summoned.

The two ghoulish black creatures ambled forward slightly, but the tall figure held up a hand for them to stop. “Interesting,” the figure noted, his deep voice rasping and with a note of curiosity. “You are clearly not from the Light World, or you would have dissolved into a spirit. What are you, child?”

“I asked you a question first, tin-head!” Danny growled, his hands lighting with ecto-fire. He was proud that his voice did not shake that time as he pushed down the sick feeling in his stomach, focusing instead of the overwhelming desire to protect this girl, whoever she was, whether she was still alive or—no. He wasn’t thinking about that.

Danny could not see the figure’s eyes under his mask, but he got the impression he was staring at his hands. “I’ve never seen power such as that. Are you one of the Sages, perhaps? Or a servant of theirs?”

“If you’re so interested in this power,” Danny snarled, “how about you come over here and try to take it?”

The being seemed to ignore him and lowered his hand. “I am interested in learning more about this creature,” he said. “Detain it so that I may study it.”

“Hey, if anyone’s a creature here, it’s—woah!” Danny quickly leapt to the air as one of the beasts swiped at him with surprising speed, its long fingers curled like deadly claws. He had no time to rest as the other descended upon him instantly, lashing out as well. He rose toward the ceiling, hoping that these beasts could not somehow fly, and fired an ecto-blast at one of them. It hit it point-blank range, but to his surprise, instead of stopping it, the monster merely shook its head and briefly glowed a strange blue, its body becoming almost see-through before snapping back to normal.

Weird.

 _I need something stronger_ , he thought, charging up another ecto-blast in his hand. He was forced to turn intangible as the first monster straightened. When it stood on two feet, it was horrifyingly tall, easily managing to strike at his boots. Fortunately, its claws sailed straight through him. Danny focused on the blast, pouring as much of his energy into it as he could. He needed to make sure it didn’t completely drain him—after all, he had Mr. Tall, Dark, and Ugly to deal with over there in the mask—but it had to be strong enough to do more than make his opponent stumble. Finally ready, he fired it as the dark beast went in for another swipe.

It hit the monster with a satisfying impact, launching it across the room where it slammed into the wall. Danny was pleased to see it crumple to the floor. He turned his attention toward the second one, prepared to do the same thing with it. Much to his shock, the beast instead raised up onto its hind legs and let out an unearthly shriek.

The bestial sound echoed ominously off the stone of the room, seemingly amplified a hundred times over. Gasping in pain, Danny covered his ears. He wondered if this is what others felt when he used his Ghostly Wail.

Annoyingly, the masked man seemed entirely unaffected by the sound.

When the scream was over, Danny tenderly removed his hands from his ears, preparing to do battle with his single remaining opponent again. Unfortunately, his bad luck was not about to abandon him as he watched the crumpled creature on the other side of the room jerk briefly before rising, with absolutely no signs of damage on its body.

Danny blinked. He didn’t expect them to be immortal!

They charged again, but Danny was beginning to panic. Distracted by the newly revived creature, he did not realize as the other one came up behind him, managing to secure a gash on his left leg with its claws. He hissed in pain. There was no way he was going to be able to deal with enemies that could seemingly resurrect its dead friends with ease. He needed to leave and regroup.

He turned toward the tall figure that seemed to be in charge. “This isn’t over!” he shouted—immediately feeling stupid, like he was Technus or some equally overdramatic foe of his. His hands glowed again, but this time an icy blue. As one of the beasts swung at him once more, Danny let out a stream of ice aimed at its legs. The beast let out an inhuman snarl as the blast successfully froze it to the ground, keeping it temporarily trapped.

Before the other monster could attack, Danny swooped down toward the girl. He noted that something about her looked odd—why was she shimmering, and why did her body look so faded? —but he paid it no heed as he lifted her up. He fired one last spike of ice at the remaining free creature to hold it back as he took the girl into the air.

And with that, he flew out the open window of the stone room and into the unknown.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I haven't written a multi-chaptered story since like 2013 but I'm here to do my best! This was supposed to be a oneshot, but it sort of grew into a huge thing that I now expect to have 15 chapters.
> 
> This story is fully plotted out and the next two chapters are already written, so you shouldn't have to wait TOO long. If I haven't updated in about a month, feel free to send me a message and ask me where I am, okay? Motivation is my biggest problem with writing and nothing motivates me more than comments from readers! :)
> 
> Thanks for reading, and I'll see you next chapter!


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Link and Midna aren't the only ones who are apparently invisible in the Twilight.

“Come on, wolf-boy, staring at her isn’t going to make her suddenly see you. We’ve got a job to do!” Midna kicked the sides of his body impatiently. It wasn’t like it hurt—she was pretty small, and his wolf body was surprisingly sturdy—but Link growled nonetheless. She _knew_ that he hated being treated like an animal.

And… it had been almost a month since he’d seen Ilia. Could Midna really blame him for wanting to spend a moment longer with her?

His best friend was sitting on a stool in front of the prone body of a young Zora boy, quietly conversing with the woman behind her. Link had followed her scent through Castle Town in the Twilight and managed to sneak into this establishment, which appeared to be a bar, through the door that was left ajar. No one commented on the wolf that was suddenly in their midst, of course. After all, no one could see him. Normal Hylians turned into spirits in the Twilight; the only reason he didn’t was because of some ridiculous divine blessing from the gods that turned him into a wolf instead. He still didn’t understand why he of all people had received this blessing, but at least it gave him the ability to actually fight back and attempt to free Hyrule from its Twilit oppressors.

At first glance, Ilia looked no different than she had all those years they’d grown up together in Ordon Village. She still had the same messy, short blonde hair and caring blue eyes. However, on closer examination Link could see the toll that the past month since her kidnapping had taken on her. Her clothes, though still the same traditional Ordonian garb, were clearly rumpled and in disarray. Bags hung under her eyes from clear exhaustion, a pervasive tiredness clear in her entire being. The worst of all, however, was her eyes. If there was one thing he knew about his friend, it was that she was always sure of herself, no matter what happened. He hated that some of that confidence seemed to have been stripped away during this ordeal, a confusion swimming in her eyes that he’d never seen before.

If Ilia, his most steadfast friend, was no longer confident in herself, how could he ever hope to be confident enough to save the kingdom?

And what could have possibly happened that stripped his friend’s most prominent quality away from her?

“Let’s goooooooo,” Midna groaned, finally seeming to give up on trying to roughhouse him into cooperating and instead dramatically flopping onto his back like he was a giant furry bed. Her arms hung over the side of his body, waving impatiently in the air.

With one last longing glance at Ilia, Link reluctantly turned back towards the entrance to the bar and exited out into Castle Town. If there was one thing he’d learned about his impish companion since she had mysteriously appeared and rescued him from the dungeons of Hyrule Castle earlier that month, it was that making her unhappy was always a bad idea. Midna had several ways of getting revenge and few of them were pleasant for the one on the receiving end.

Sometimes he wondered why he still put up with her. She was condescending and snarky, always finding something to criticize him about no matter the situation. But then he remembered that not only did she seem to be one of the few people knowledgeable about these invaders from the Twilight Realm, but she had the uncanny ability to merge with his shadow, allowing her to follow him whether he wanted her to or not. Besides, he had to admit, she had been quite helpful in taking down the Shadow Beasts, and she did seem to genuinely care about ridding Hyrule of the twilight.

Link let his animal senses guide him as he retreaded his path through Castle Town, following the same path that had taken him to Ilia in reverse. The guards in the bar had mentioned a spirit spring in Lake Hylia. If the Twilight that covered Castle Town was anything like that of the other regions he’d visited, the Light Spirit that resided there must have been attacked and had its light stripped away. He would need to head there in order to save it.

He hardly paid attention to his surroundings, since all the people who surrounded him were mere spirits, only visible to him thanks to his wolfish abilities. So when Midna jabbed him in the side and asked “Hey, what’s up with that guy?” he initially thought that she was just going to poke fun at some hapless Hylian that didn’t realize they were being watched as she’d done countless times before. But when he looked in the direction she was pointing, he noticed that the target of her comment looked… different.

A boy was walking around the center of Castle Town looking extremely distressed. He was walking from person to person, harassing the passersby as they walked through the town, yelling and frantically waving his hands. None of the people walking by were acknowledging him, despite his clear panic.

Link skidded to a halt, staring at him. He had unusually pure white hair and strange black and white clothing that matched no style Link had ever seen. His skin and eyes also appeared almost luminescent, like he had some sort of internal glow. Something about him made Link… uncomfortable. The wolf instincts that had awoken when he had first entered the twilight did _not_ like this boy. It was almost like there was an aura of death surrounding him, a scent of decay almost reminiscent of some of the monsters he fought in the twilight.

But that was not the strangest part about him. No, it was that he was completely _solid_.

Unlike every other living being on the streets who were painted in faded blues, their forms flickering with an unearthly light and hardly visible unless Link focused with lupine senses, this boy looked completely corporeal, as solid as Link and Midna themselves.

Midna let out a giggle, the exact kind that Link despised because it usually meant she had some awful idea that he was going to hate. “I think we should go say hi.”

oOoOo

It was very obvious that Danny’s day was absolutely not planning on improving.

When Danny had left through that window, desperately trying to escape from his seemingly unkillable enemies, he was not sure what to expect. But finding himself in a medieval town populated by people that made him shudder with the slightest hint of his ghost sense was not it.

It appeared that the Ghost Portal had not deposited him somewhere in his own time. Apparently he’d ended up somewhere in the past or something, judging by the clearly outdated tunics and dresses that everyone wore, and the impressive ancient castle he’d flown out of, overlooking an equally ancient-looking city. He supposed he was lucky everyone wasn’t talking like Shakespeare. He’d only barely managed to pass his last test about Hamlet with significant tutoring from Jazz.

Stranger still was the sky. Above his head was a thick cloud cover that seemed to trap the brilliance of the sun, causing the air to be bathed in a dim orange and gray light. It made the world seem, in Danny’s opinion, rather dreary. Danny also kept thinking he was seeing strange black rectangular particles twirling in the air, emanating from the ground and rising up before eerily disappearing. Sometimes they seemed to dot the landscape like dark raindrops, and other times they vanished just before he could stare at them directly, making him wonder if he was simply hallucinating them.

Overall, he was undeniably creeped out. And that was saying something, considering he’d been to the Ghost Zone.

He dropped down in an alley that seemed discreet enough and gently placed the woman on the ground. He hissed as he landed on his left foot, peering down at the wound the beast had made. His healing powers were slowly stitching it up, but it was still tender and painful to walk on. Unfortunately, without the proper healing supplies, it would probably take a least a day for it to stop aching whenever he put pressure on it, and probably longer before it would completely disappear. But he would manage. He’d had to deal with worse before. He once survived gym class with a broken arm, and Tetslaff was definitely not the type who’d let him sit out with no good reason. And it wasn’t like he could tell her “Sorry, a hunting-obsessed ghost with a green mullet shoved me into a building last period. Could I pretty please not use the arm I landed on?”

Sighing, he glanced at the girl he’d brought—and was unpleasantly reminded of the horrifying burns covering her skin. Now that he got a closer look, he could see winding Lichtenberg scars.

Unfortunately, he thought, a painful thrum going through his ghost core, he was all too familiar with how difficult it was to survive electric shocks.

First order of business: get this woman medical help. To do that, it was probably best not to frighten the people in town by appearing as a ghost. So he reached into that pocket of warm life in his chest and pulled on it to trigger the transformation.

Nothing happened.

He blinked in confusion. That had never happened before.

He tried again. Unsurprisingly, he was met with the same result. He glared at his hands, which remained gloved and glowing as if to directly taunt him.

He tried to quell his rising panic. Would he ever be able to transform back? Was he fully dead now? No, that made no sense, he could still feel his human half within him. He was just completely unable to access it for whatever reason.

Just what had that portal _done_ to him?

A glance at the body next to him reminded him that he had other important things to worry about. She needed help, no matter what his own problems were. He would have to try and find assistance in ghost form and simply blend in for as long as he could.

All his fears about appearing abnormal disappeared when he exited the alley.

The people in this town did… not look normal. Even without the weird medieval clothes. He’d noticed in the air that everyone had looked almost like glowing blue pinpricks of light rather than actual human beings, but he thought it was just this weird dark lighting playing tricks on his eyes. After all, the sky was covered in dark orange clouds that caused the entire world to seem shrouded in shadows. Now that he was close… it was hard to ignore that these people’s forms seemed to radiate entirely from the glowing dot in their center. He had to really focus on them to get an actual idea of what they looked like, and even then it was like someone had turned down the color saturation, like he was looking at them in a super dark room instead of point blank during the day. (Or what he assumed was the day? It was hard to tell.)

The way the lights at their edges flickered reminded him of weak ghosts that couldn’t hold a physical form.

Maybe that explained why he had a creeping chill in his throat. He wished it would stop. His ghost sense was uncomfortable enough when it reacted normally. His ice core meant that he was used to being cold, but he was not used to this unnatural stinging frigidity that made it feel like shards of ice were stuck in his windpipe.

Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, his eyes quickly alighted on a man dressed in armor walking past. He was probably a knight or something, right? A knight would know how to get help for this potentially dying (not dead, _please_ not dead) woman.

“Excuse me,” he said to the man, trying to be polite. The last thing he wanted was to be thrown in the dungeons or whatever. “There’s a woman over there that needs help. Can you—”

He paused as the man walked straight past him, not even glancing in his direction.

“Wow, you could have just said you were busy!” Danny huffed, scowling and crossing his arms. Well, he never said he’d continue to be polite if they were rude first.

He turned to another man who was standing behind a stall selling vegetables, calling to people as they passed to entice them to see his wares. “Hi, I’m looking for a doctor? There’s an injured woman in that alley.”

Like the knight, the man did not react, staring straight past Danny to call to a woman who walked behind him.

Danny threw up his arms in frustration. “This is _serious_!” he shouted, moving to stand directly in front of the woman who the vegetable salesman had called to. If they kept ignoring him, he was going to _make_ someone stop and listen. “I’m trying to save—”

And then the woman walked straight through him.

Danny gasped, feeling faintly like he’d been dunked in ice water. His ghost sense had shuddered in his chest at the contact, finally coming up in an uneasy puff of cool air that he nearly choked out. It had never felt so… _wrong_ before.

Danny was fine with walking through people, but he was decidedly not fine with them walking through _him_.

Feeling his panic rising, Danny hurried through the streets, shouting at each person he could see, desperate to somehow get their attention. “Hey! Listen to me! I’m not kidding, this is really important! That woman might… might _die_ and I don’t know how to help her and WHY ARE YOU ALL IGNORING ME!”

“Looks like they can’t see you either. Eee hee hee!”

Despite having waited for a response, Danny yelped and nearly stumbled as he abruptly spun around to face the melodic, echoing voice that had suddenly spoken. Then he blinked, for in front of him was the strangest duo he’d ever seen: a huge menacing dog-like animal with fierce blue eyes carrying a blue-and-black impish creature with a strange gray helmet on its head. His only consolation was that they seemed to be completely normal in color and solidity, unlike the ghostly townspeople.

“I-Is that a wolf?” was the only thing he could think to say in response.

The imp let out another feminine giggle. “Wow, he’s smart, isn’t he?” she said, nudging the animal beneath her. And Danny was only made more confused when the wolf _rolled its eyes_.

“Are you a ghost?” he asked dumbly. His ghost sense was still caught in his throat, so he doubted it, but perhaps something about this creature was messing it up? For all he knew, he was in a ghost lair, and the people around the town were just as real as the shades in Poindexter’s mirror: incomplete remnants of memories with no true will of their own.

“Hmm, I don’t think so,” the imp said thoughtfully, and Danny would have relaxed… if she hadn’t immediately floated into the air above the wolf’s back, almost like she was intentionally casting doubt on her statement. “But enough about us. I’m much more interested in _you_.” With a smirk that showed off sharp teeth, the imp floated directly in front of his face, much farther into his personal space than he would have liked.

“Um… why’s that?” he replied, trying his best to sound politely curious but honestly just feeling creeped out. This imp was definitely giving off unfriendly vibes and he wasn’t eager to have people prying into his secrets.

“You seem to be a light dweller,” she hummed thoughtfully, “but you’re completely solid. Anyone not of the twilight turns into a spirit. That’s why they can’t see you. Any idea on why you’re not affected?”

He winced. Well. Though most of those words meant nothing to him—he had no idea what a “light dweller” was or how a time of day had anything to do with this—the word _spirit_ definitely did. That might explain why he couldn’t transform. Little did she know that this crazy place _was_ affecting him—he already _was_ a spirit. “Couldn’t I ask you the same thing?” he said defensively.

She raised an eyebrow expectantly, silent and unmoving. It took him only a second to realize she was not going to answer him.

“I have some… unusual circumstances?” He hated that that came out as a question. Then, with a start, he realized that he was forgetting something. “Wait! There’s a woman that I brought here! She was hurt and I need someone to help her!”

The wolf perked up at this, regarding him with the best concerned look that his lupine features could handle. The imp rolled her eyes. “Ugh. Now this guy’s not going to leave until we help this person. Fine, lead the way.”

With a short glance to ensure they were actually going to follow, he hurried back toward the alleyway he had left the woman in. In his haste, he had to force himself not to leap into the air to speed up; though the people of the town were clearly some sort of ghosts, none of them seemed to be able to fly, and it seemed best that he blend in as much as possible.

To his surprise, there was already a small crowd surrounding the place he’d left her.

At the forefront of this crowd was a hunched over man with ridiculously oversized glasses glaring at the body intently. A man dressed in armor (another knight? Danny wondered) was leaning against a wall nearby looking extremely shaken. Danny was certain that if he wasn’t a spirit and totally drained of color, he’d be pale.

“Can you save her?” he whispered.

After a moment of consideration, the man with large glasses huffed. “No. This is a complete waste of my time. There is nothing I can do for a dead body.”

Danny’s breath caught in his throat.

The man turned on his heel and began heading out of the alley toward Danny and the odd figures he’d just met. Danny scrambled out of the way to avoid being walked through. “Clearly she was murdered by something, based on those strange burns. This is a job for your fellow guards, not a doctor. Now good day to you, sir.”

And with that, he disappeared around the corner.

“B-But I just saw her! She had just gone out looking for her ex one more time… W-We had a date tonight!” The guard buried his face in his hands as the small group of people nearby moved in to offer soft murmurs of comfort, but Danny just stood there, paralyzed, staring at the woman on the ground.

He was used to death—he’d come to terms with his own half-death forever ago, not to mention he technically dealt with the spirits of dead people on a daily basis. But despite their violence, the ghosts in Amity Park rarely took human lives.

He’d never failed to save someone so thoroughly before. The part of him that had changed, the part that died in that portal two years ago, the part that had latched onto the obsessive desire to protect others…

For that part, hearing those words hurt like a physical blow.

“We were too late,” said the imp plainly.

Something in her voice enraged him. Danny whirled on her. “Do you even _care_?” he shouted. “She… That guard cared about her a lot! He’s lost someone important to him! And that poor woman is… is…”

“Look, I get it, it’s sad,” she said, apparently unconcerned by his outburst. “But a random dead light dweller is not something I’m going to cry over. What am I even supposed to do? I can’t resurrect the dead.”

“You’re… ugh!” Throwing up his arms in frustration, he glared at her, the glow of his aura flaring out. “You’re unbelievable. Forget it, I’m going to find a way to get home. Maybe find a portal somewhere. I’m so done with this stupid medieval world and all its weirdness!”

“Wait, wait.” The imp flew in front of Danny, holding out her arms. He glowered, half-tempted to simply phase through her, but he had a feeling that might just make his situation worse. “What was that about a portal?”

He blinked. Oops. Had he said that?

“I knew it.” Her grin was like a lioness who just caught her prey, full of predatory delight. “You’re not from this world, are you?”

For a brief moment, he considered admitting it; the imp was clearly not human herself, and considering everyone in this town was already some kind of ghost anyway, it wouldn’t matter if he admitted he was one, would it? Maybe she could help him.

But then he remembered her flippant attitude toward the woman’s dead body. If that was how she treated humans, he wanted nothing to do with her. He would find help elsewhere; there was no way that she was the only one in the whole entire world who could see him.

He shook his head. He didn’t know these people, and where he came from was none of their business.

In the blink of an eye, he disappeared from view and ran straight through her. Ignoring her sharp gasp and the wolf’s surprised yelp, he flew, up and over all the buildings of the town until that alleyway was nowhere in sight. He would find his own way home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, how was it? My goal is to try and upload every week, sooner if I finish a future chapter ahead of time. (I just finished Chapter 4, so I can upload this a little early!) Can't promise I'll stick to that schedule forever but I'll do my best.
> 
> (Bonus points to anyone who can figure out who the woman who died is. She's actually a Twilight Princess character.)


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Danny meets a mysterious skeletal figure who gives him a riddle. Zant confronts Princess Zelda.

As he invisibly flew over this strange world, Danny found himself struggling to keep calm. The unfamiliar terrain below him was a constant reminder that he was no longer in Amity Park, probably no longer even in the United States… possibly no longer even in his own _time period_ if their clothing was any indication. At this point he was doubting he was even in his own dimension. Could Ghost Portals do that? He really wished he’d asked Frostbite more questions when he’d explained how they worked during the Infi-Map debacle.

His mind kept wandering back to his home. What was everyone there thinking about his disappearance? Sam, Tucker, and Jazz would surely cover for him for a little while, but at some point their worry would outweigh their caution and they would reveal his secret. How would his parents take that? Would they try to help find him? How long until that happened Would he be able to make it home before then?

…Was it even possible to get home?

No. No, no, that was _very bad_ thinking and he did not have time for that. He needed to focus. Where was he now, and what should his next step be?

Flying to the edge of the town, he found untouched fields beyond its walls that probably would have been a brilliant green if not for the unnerving dull atmosphere. In the distance was a massive valley with what appeared to be some minor buildings surrounding it. Beyond that… it was difficult to tell. The clouds seemed to thicken the farther away he looked, making it impossible to see much further.

Danny glanced at the town below him, his mind running through what little information he’d just learned. According to the imp, none of those people could see him because they were spirits. That didn’t make much sense though, since he kind of already _was_ a spirit, so he suspected it had more to do with the whole “light dweller” thing that she had brought up a few times. If he was right, and he actually was in another world (which would make it so, so, so much harder to get home and he _needed to stop thinking about that_ ), then his ghost form probably just didn’t qualify. That hopefully explained why he couldn’t transform into a human, meaning he would regain that ability once he left this insane place behind.

Now… he just had to figure out how to do that.

If the imp was correct, it seemed unlikely that he would find any help within the town. Perhaps, instead, he could try the settlements near the valley in the distance, or maybe even try to keep flying and see if he could find a town that wasn’t populated by spirits.

Goal decided, Danny began flying in the direction of the valley. He tried to remember his route; it would be less than ideal if he ended up getting lost and couldn’t find his way back to the town if he needed to. He was extremely relieved that the farther he got away from the town, the more his ghost sense receded back to the normal chill of his core instead of a constant prickling annoyance.

He was surprised to find that the closer he got to the valley, the closer those thick clouds in the distance seemed to become. It was almost like they were forming a solid wall. That was more than a little concerning, but hopefully he wouldn’t have to deal with them any time soon.

He finally reached the valley and approached a bridge that stretched across the top of it to pause and evaluate his next move. As he landed, he scrunched up his nose at the weird scent in the air. It reminded him of when his dad had been trying out various energy sources in the Specter Speeder and he spilled oil all over the floor of the lab, causing it to stink for weeks afterward. As he scrutinized the bridge, he realized it _did_ seem to be covered in some kind of strange substance. But who the heck covered a bridge in oil?

Deciding to dismiss that, he instead examined the valley below, and he realized that it looked… unusual. The few structures he saw at its base were surprisingly minimal and mostly scattered on the highest pieces of land. The bottom was damp and filled with small puddles of water, with a tiny pond in the center, and he could clearly see water lines along the edges.

Was this once a lake or something?

The most prominent feature of this area was the large wooden structure in the very center built upon what might have been floating docks. He was considering heading there first when an awfully familiar sensation overcame him, his breath coiling out in a burst of cool air.

Danny stiffened. There was a ghost nearby. And not just one of those spirits.

Falling instinctively into a more alert, battle-ready stance, he quickly glanced around. He didn’t see anything, but that didn’t mean much—despite his more prominent foes being loud and obnoxious, plenty of ghosts knew how to be subtle.

He briefly closed his eyes, focusing on the part of his core that reacted to the ghostly presence. Over the years he had managed to hone his ghost sense to the point where he could generally determine where the ghost he sensed was. It wasn’t always super accurate, but at least it could give him an idea of what he was dealing with. He followed the tug and headed to a ledge overlooking the empty lake.

He did not find a ghost. Instead, the only thing there was an unassuming, short stone statue with a small hole inside of it, an eye-like design painted on its surface.

He frowned, surveying his surroundings. His ghost sense had definitely led him here, but he could not find a ghost. Was it invisible? Or… his eyes locked onto the statue.

Something was certainly different about it. A vaguely familiar power emanated from it, almost drawing him in. In fact, the feeling reminded him somewhat of the Ghost Portal in his parents’ basement with its cool energy that called to the ectoplasm within him.

He warily stepped forward, reluctant to get too close. If this thing really did have ghostly energy—or worse, was somehow a ghost itself—it probably wasn’t friendly. Danny found that most ghosts that plagued the human world were not the kindest. Even if it were somehow benign, who knew how it would react with his ghost half?

However, the closer he got, the more confused he became as quiet, haunting whistles filled the air. He had to strain to hear them, but what he could make out sounded almost like… music. A soft, comforting tune rang out, so high-pitched and soft that Danny had a feeling that normal humans would be unable to hear it.

Soon he was close enough to touch the statue that overlooked the dry lake. He was now absolutely certain that this was what had set off his ghost sense, though he had no idea why.

He cautiously reached out to touch the statue—

And then everything faded to white.

oOoOo

When he awoke, he immediately knew something was wrong.

It was a feeling nearly impossible to describe to a human, but the constant presence of his ghost core allowed him to always tell whether he was in the Real World or the Ghost Zone. In the Real World, he felt the warmth of his human body more prominently, a feeling that enveloped the icy chill in his chest. However, in the Ghost Zone, he always felt like the coolness of his ghost core was more omnipresent—it was much easier to remain as a ghost and just slightly harder to stay as a human. It wasn’t like turning into either form was ever difficult—it was just… less comfortable? It was hard to explain.

Right now, Danny didn’t feel that comfortably oppressive warmth, so he initially assumed he was in the Ghost Zone. But he didn’t feel the coolness of the Zone’s free-floating ectoplasm so… where was he?

He groaned and sat up, not necessarily in pain, but definitely feeling like he’d been sleeping for ages and the sunlight was streaming through his window at _just_ the right angle to hit his eyes. Annoyed, he opened them.

He was met with an eerily desolate landscape, its edges filled with bright white fog. The sky was the same shade of whites and grays. The outlines of structures could be seen in the distance, but it was difficult to make them out. He could have sworn one of them looked vaguely like the castle he’d escaped from earlier in the day.

This… definitely wasn’t anywhere he recognized.

A clang of metal on metal startled him out of his thoughts and he realized that maybe instead of sitting there like an idiot he should pay more attention to his surroundings.

He spun around to face the noise and was met with a… surprising figure.

Danny was used to fighting the dead to say the least. He’d fought plenty of foes that even looked vaguely like corpses—hell, he’d fought an entire _army_ of skeletons when Pariah Dark had risen.

But this guy? He was something else.

His form was skeletal, his face sunken in with a single eye glowing an uncanny red. He was dressed from head to toe in armor which, though seemingly rusted, made the figure appear foreboding and powerful. He wielded a sword in his left hand and a shield in the other, a helmeted gaze peering at him emotionlessly.

This guy was definitely the source of his ghost sense going off earlier. But… he wasn’t quite a ghost; he felt different than any other ghost he’d fought before. It was almost like his ecto-signature was… repressed? Like it was behind a thick wall and Danny couldn’t quite get a full feel for it.

Danny was really, really tired of how many things in this world fell into the category of “feels-like-a-ghost-but-isn’t.”

The skeleton—or zombie, or whatever he was—placed a sword at Danny’s feet and then got into a battle-ready stance. Sensing a fight, Danny prepared an ecto-blast.

But… nothing happened.

He felt a jolt of fear. His ghost powers were gone.

He raised his arms defensively, prepared for the skeleton’s onslaught—but none came. He tentatively lowered his eyes and noticed that the skeleton was still standing there stoically, sword and shield held ready for battle, but he was not advancing forward. Instead, he was staring at Danny almost expectantly.

Danny’s gaze dropped to the sword. Oh, wait. “Did you… want me to pick this up?” he asked the zombie stupidly.

He was unsurprised when he received no answer. Nonetheless, he was pretty sure he’d figured it out.

Sure, it had taken him a while, but he was only a C student after all.

He picked up the sword and raised it uneasily. A while ago, Princess Dorathea had her knights try to teach him how to use a sword. He was essentially an honorary knight of her realm anyway; in her words, he was supposed to learn swordplay to “bring honor to her kingdom” or something like that. Unfortunately, after four straight hours of attempted lessons, the knights had completely given up on him. It seemed that though he had plenty of battle experience, he was much better with just his fists or ranged blasts than any kind of melee weapon. Dora had wanted him to continue, but he refused, since it wasn’t like he could carry a sword with him all the time.

Now faced with a cadaverous foe with a sword as his only level of defense, he desperately wished he could at least remember if he was supposed to use one hand or two hands with this kind of blade...

Danny made the first strike, hesitantly raising the sword and bringing it swiping down toward the skeleton’s armored torso. Faster than Danny could follow (and he could usually follow quite fast, thank you very much), the skeleton brought up its shield and stopped his shaky blow. Danny had just an instant where he met the creature’s single eye in surprise before he was unceremoniously shoved backwards. He stumbled and barely managed to catch himself from tripping right over his feet.

Danny was natural at fighting in the air. But flight, like all his powers, was currently out of his reach, leaving him feeling irritatingly heavy and off-balance on solid ground, especially with an unwieldy weapon in his hands.

Danny thrust forward again, this time trying to remember one of the maneuvers that Dora’s knights had taught him, but the sword bounced helplessly off the enemy’s own. He twisted around to try and attack the other side, but he had no luck there, either.

Then, for the first time, his foe stepped forward and struck. Danny managed to block the first blow, but the second was a strong blunt hit to his side that sent him sprawling on the ground.

“Your swordplay lacks skill,” he heard a gravelly voice state as he lay face down on the ground.

He sat up (wincing as he did; he really hoped his healing abilities weren’t also gone) and glared at the zombie who was still standing over him. “How about you let me use my powers? Then I’ll show you who has no skills!”

“Powers?” The figure examined him stoically before saying, “Ah, I see. You are one of the many ones lost beyond the veil.”

“The _what_?”

“You are dead.” He paused, and then added somberly, “Just as I am.”

Danny grimaced. Sure, he’d come to terms with the fact that he was partially _living-challenged_ long ago, but he hated when people pointed it out. He certainly didn’t need that kind of comment from a literal walking corpse. “I’m only half-dead, okay?”

The skeleton appeared to ignore him. “That explains your aura. I apologize for immediately attacking you, but you possess the scent of magic and death. I assumed the worst.” His only visible eye narrowed. “What are your true intentions in this place, spirit?”

“I don’t know,” he groaned. “I don’t even know what this place is!”

“This is my dimension, a place I created so that I can pass on my teachings in peace.”

He blinked. “Like… a ghost lair.” That made sense, Danny thought. If this guy really was some type of ghost, then he would be able to fully manipulate his own lair and determine nearly all the rules within it. Though it would take an extremely powerful ghost to prevent him from being able to use his powers within their lair, it did hypothetically seem within the realm of possibility.

The skeleton inclined his head. “I have not heard of such a thing, but it is possible. You are a very different type of spirit, so it is hard to say how many of your rules apply.” For the first time, the zombie lowered his blade, allowing Danny to finally relax. “You should not be here.”

Danny looked back down at the ground, his hair hanging in front of his face. He was beginning to feel overwhelmed. After a crazy fight with immortal enemies, he had immediately met a creepy imp who was completely apathetic towards the plights of humans, and then he’d been dragged into a horrifying realm and forced to fight a zombie and now he was being practically _blamed_ for it. And on top of all that… he still had _no way to get home_.

“I know,” he answered. He tried to push down the rising tide of emotions that was threatening to break the surface, but he wasn’t able to stop the break in his voice. “I know, but… I just want to go home.”

Silence stretched around them. It lasted so long that Danny wondered if the figure had left. When he looked up, he found that the skeleton had sheathed his sword. How he’d done that silently, Danny had no idea.

He approached Danny quietly, kneeling down to meet his gaze. He stared into Danny’s eyes wordlessly for a moment more. “I can sense that the fire you bear is akin to my own. In life I was known as a hero that cast out the darkness and brought forth light.” His voice was firm but soft. “I can now see that you bear no ill will, but your appearance here was certainly no accident. It seems the goddesses have plans for you, young spirit.”

Danny shook his head, confused—but before he could ask more questions, the world around him faded away, the skeleton’s crimson orb the last sight he saw before it turned completely white. He panicked, instinctively trying to shoot out an ecto-blast before remembering that he still had no powers. Just as he opened his mouth to yell out in terror, the zombie’s voice rang out, echoing ominously.

“ _The song of light will abolish the mirror’s shadows. Seek the mortal goddess reborn… only then will you find salvation…_ ”

And then he knew no more.

oOoOo

Zant, the King of Twilight, was furious. His underlings knew better than to bother him as he stalked through the corridors of Hyrule Castle; though the Shadow Beasts were only just barely sentient on their own, they scrambled out of his way.

Midna, despite the curse Zant had placed on her, was back, and she had a new ally. A _Hero_ , his master called him, a boy blessed by the power of the Goddess of Courage. Zant snarled. It was ridiculous—this so-called Hero was just a human, and yet he had managed to single-handedly collect the light he had stolen from the Light Spirits and purge his twilight from the kingdom!

And on top of that, his lord was unhappy with him since his previous attempt to access the Sacred Realm had failed. Not only had the portal he created disappeared almost instantly, but the odd creature that had emerged from it had escaped him and his Shadow Beasts seemingly effortlessly and even stole the body of the sage’s descendant!

Zant feared his lord’s displeasure, and when Zant was afraid, that meant he was angry. And when he was angry, that meant that everyone else better damn well be wary of the usurper’s wrath.

Zant demanded answers, and Zant would receive them. And there was only one person who he could easily reach who could give him these answers.

The doors to the top tower room of the castle burst open, revealing a young woman in a hooded cloak sitting forlornly at an open window, gazing at the twilit sky.

“Princess Zelda,” he spat.

The captured sovereign of Hyrule turned her head, tilting it toward him in acknowledgement. “Zant.”

“You will tell me what you know of the Hero,” the usurper demanded.

“The Hero…?” she repeated slowly, turning to face him more directly. “The one from the stories? I know nothing of him aside from legends. You have access to my library; surely you can find the information you seek in there.”

“Do not play a fool with me, princess,” he growled. “I know that you are bound to the Hero by the power of your gods.”

“That may be true, but I have never met this Hero. I was unaware that he even existed until now.”

Zant struggled to maintain the cool and composed countenance that he had worked so hard to establish. Unfortunately, Zant had a suspicion that the princess was telling the truth. There was no possible way she could have met Midna or the Hero, considering she had been locked in this tower ever since she surrendered. “Very well,” he said stiffly. “Then tell me of the Sacred Realm.”

“That is another topic that you could simply read about…” Upon seeing Zant’s entire body twitch in repressed anger, she quickly continued. “It is the realm where the goddesses descended upon the world and left behind their power. However, I fail to see how that would be useful to you, as we already know that their power is no longer there.”

“And the creatures who live there?”

She blinked. “Creatures? I’ve never heard of any creatures from the Sacred Realm.”

“And yet one came through,” he snapped. “A creature that could fly and become untouchable and wielded powerful offensive magic. I’m certain your sages sent it to destroy me, and I demand that you tell me how to defeat it if one appears again!”

Genuinely puzzled, Zelda shook her head. “I really have no idea what you are talking about. How could you have even accessed the Sacred Realm? Only magical artifacts or the full power of the sages could open it completely.”

He glared at her, the impassive face of his mask hiding whatever he was thinking from the perplexed princess. “Your beloved Hero will fail,” he said acidly, “and when he does, I will personally see that he is brought to you in chains.” He clenched his fists. “As for the creature from the Sacred Realm? I will take great pleasure in siphoning its magic and using it to destroy all you hold dear. Maybe then you will know better than to lie to me.”

He spun around and left the room without another word, slamming the door behind him.

_Very well_ , he thought viciously. If she would not tell him what this creature was, he would do his own research. Seeing as the creature did not seem keen on reappearing, he would need to create another portal. And for that…

He thought back to the list of the descendants of sages that he had obtained. One of them was a barkeeper who lived in Castle Town. He smirked.

It was time to get another sacrifice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed! I struggled a LOT with writing this chapter, and I'm still not super happy with it honestly, but eh. I was able to shove in some DP headcanons at least which was nice. :P
> 
> How is it so far? Is the pacing okay? Your feedback is appreciated, so don't be afraid to let me know what you think! I won't get mad if you give me advice on how to improve. Promise!
> 
> Just as a side note, this story is based on the GameCube version of TP, or the normal mode of TPHD, which is generally considered the canon version. That's why, for example, the Hero's Shade is left-handed. For those who don't know, the Wii version and Hero Mode of TPHD are mirrored. Unfortunately for me, I only PLAYED the Wii version and Hero Mode so I'm basically having to mentally reverse all directions, so forgive me if I'm inconsistent lol.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Danny encounters a kind old man named Auru who finally gives him some much-needed information.

Danny awoke to the gentle sounds of nature.

He also awoke to realize he was laying on an extremely uncomfortable surface in a less-than-cozy position, his neck awkwardly propped up against something hard.

He tried to open his eyes but he was immediately blinded by sun beams shining directly into them. He swore and furiously blinked, trying to will away the blindness. Ghost eyesight was great for seeing in the dark, but it also made it way harder to adjust to sudden brightness.

“Are you awake now?” a man’s voice said.

Ugh. Danny really wished he could, for once, get the chance to see the owner of an unfamiliar voice before they said something.

When he was finally able to squint and at least partially take in his surroundings, he initially believed he was in a completely new location. However, after scanning the area, he realized that he did recognize this place. Just a few feet away was that strange stone that had caused him to pass out in the first place.

His mind was brought back to the vision he’d just had. Had any of that been real…?

There were such a surprising number of changes to the environment that Danny really couldn’t blame himself for not recognizing it at first. His previous suspicions were proven right when he noticed that the valley he’d been in was now full of water; it was a proper lake instead of a muddy mess. The sky was also alit with bright sunlight and baby blues, cheery clouds lazily drifting overhead. It was a far cry from the depressing grays and oranges he had seen before he’d woken up. He could have been in Amity Park for how _normal_ it all looked. Just what on earth had he missed? How long had he even been out?

In front of him was also an older man with graying hair staring at him with an expression of polite concern.

And then it hit him: this man was staring. At _him_. In concern! The man could _see_ him!

He glanced down at himself and was relieved to find that at some point while he’d been passed out he had returned to human form. That, of course, raised the question of why he couldn’t do that before when he was _trying_ to, but he would save that puzzle for later.

Perhaps the more important question was—what had this man seen, exactly?

“How are you feeling?” the man in front of him asked. “I found you unconscious here on the side of the lake. Do you remember what happened?”

Danny cleared his throat, trying to find his voice. “I-I’m okay. Hey, uh… weird question, but did I look any… _different_ when you found me?” When the man gave him a confused frown, Danny just shook his head. “Never mind, forget I said that. Thanks for your help. I think I’m good now.” He pushed himself to a seating position, grimacing as his muscles protested. He’d been laying on the grass, propped up against a rock. No wonder he was so sore.

The man raised an eyebrow. “Are you sure that’s wise? Don’t you think you should take it easy?”

“I’ll be fine. It’s really not that bad,” he asserted. It was at that moment that he tried to place his weight on his leg to stand up—and a wave of pain instantly shot through him, making him bite down a swear and nearly collapse back down to the dirt. Danny shot a glare as the old man in front of him started to chuckle.

“I warned you,” he said. “I have seen numerous injuries over the years, and though I’m no doctor, I have a good idea of when someone should take a rest.” The man gestured towards Danny’s left leg, which the teen only now remembered was where he had been scratched by that beast from the castle. He noticed that someone had kindly bandaged it up. “I’ve seen wounds like that, and they are not easy to recover from. Unfortunately, they are becoming all too common in this day and age, and it helps to know how to treat them.”

“You mean… you did that?” Danny asked, surprised. He was certainly not used to strangers helping him out. In Amity Park he was either the dangerous ghost boy who no one wanted to help whether they supported him or not out of fear of retaliation from his enemies, or he was hiding his wounds in order to keep his identity a secret. This was definitely new, especially considering the job seemed, from what he could tell, quite professional. “Thanks a ton. Really.”

The man waved his gratitude off. “It was nothing. I merely did what any good Hyrulian would do if they had the skills.” The man held out a hand toward Danny. “My name is Auru. And you are?”

“I’m Danny,” he mumbled, tentatively shaking the man’s hand. Then Danny paused, realizing this was the first normal person who he’d had contact with. Not an imp, not a creepy weirdo in a mask, but a real human. This might be his only chance for who knew how long to get some help. “Actually… I hate to ask, but could you help me with something else? I’m not really from around here. Can you tell me where I am?”

The man, apparently named Auru, simply blinked at him, looking rather bewildered. “I suppose that makes sense,” he said. “Your clothing is quite strange. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Danny laughed nervously. What was he supposed to say in response to that?

“This is Lake Hylia,” Auru said, gesturing around him. “Southwest of Castle Town.”

“Is that in Europe?” 

Auru frowned. “No. I’ve never heard of such a place. You’re in the Lanayru province.” At Danny’s blank look, he continued. “Home of the Zoras? It’s in the kingdom of Hyrule. Surely you’ve heard of Hyrule.”

He had definitely not heard of any place called Hyrule. And if this man hadn’t heard of Europe… either Danny was _really_ far in the past, or… his worst fear was true.

Crap, he really wished someone had explained Ghost Portals to him better. Couldn’t Frostbite have mentioned that they not only travelled through time, but also through _dimensions_? Or maybe Clockwork could have brought it up just _once_?

“Right. Hyrule. Of course I know Hyrule. Totally.” Danny knew he wasn’t being convincing—he really didn’t need Auru’s doubtful frown to tell him that—but he was just so _tired_. Maybe not physically, but way too much had happened in the last couple of hours for him to care anymore.

“What brings you to our kingdom, then?” Auru inquired. “Are you planning on staying, or just passing through?”

“Actually, I’m trying to get home,” he admitted. “I’m just… not so sure how to get there.”

“I see. Then you have no place to stay?”

Danny paused. “I… guess not.” Honestly, he had been much more worried about how to _leave_ than what he would do if he had to _stay_.

“Well, there are some good inns in Castle Town. I’d be happy to suggest a few for you.”

“I don’t really have any money,” Danny mumbled. He didn’t even know what they _used_ for money here. Did they use gold? That’s what medieval societies used, right? Where the heck was he supposed to get gold?

He saw Auru studying him closely before the older man sighed. “I can tell that you have been through a lot recently,” he said, and wow, that was an understatement, though Danny wasn’t sure how to feel knowing the man could tell that just from looking at him. “I am disappointed that you had to come to our country while we are in such disarray. Hyrule is a wonderful place most of the time, and at any other time I’d be honored to welcome you into our kingdom. However…” Auru looked away. “I’m unsure how much you know, but we were recently invaded by terrible monsters. They are dark, inhuman beasts that seem to grow in numbers every day. I suspect you already met some of them,” he said, gesturing to Danny’s bandaged wound.

Danny nodded grimly. That certainly sounded like the monsters he had fought…

“People outside of the main towns have been attacked, kidnapped, even slaughtered. Families are being torn apart. The roads have become dangerous to travel and even the fate of our own princess, who was to be crowned queen in just a few short weeks, is unknown to us. We fear the worst.”

Auru exhaled heavily, rubbing his temple with a strained expression that highlighted the wrinkles on his wizened face. Danny winced sympathetically, recognizing that look of burden in Auru’s eyes—that awful feeling that people were hurt, and you had failed to stop it. He knew that feeling way better than any teenager rightfully should.

“My point,” Auru said finally, “is that it is not safe to travel through Hyrule now. And I cannot in good conscience leave someone as young as yourself to the mercy of those monsters, especially when you have already been attacked.” He paused. “I am going to head to the Light Spirit’s spring to pay my respects, but I will not be gone long. I am planning on heading to Castle Town when I return. If you truly have no plans in mind, I may be able to find you accommodations with a friend of mine there.”

“Really?” Danny breathed. “That’s… I mean, you really don’t have to—”

“It’s no trouble,” Auru insisted. “I will be back shortly.”

Danny watched as Auru stood and made his way down the small hill they were sitting on that overlooked the lake. As soon as the man was out of view, Danny subtly raised his hand and summoned a small ball of ecto energy to it. He heaved a sigh of relief when the energy came readily. Between being stuck in his ghost form for no reason and not being able to use his powers in that vision, he’d been concerned that something might be wrong. He wanted to try fully transform into his ghost half now, just to be certain that everything was fine, but this area was far too open for something as obvious as that, so he instead elected to stay and wait for Auru’s return.

He allowed the energy to harmlessly dissipate and stretched out his limbs. He was already starting to feel much better, just from getting off the hard ground. Now that his wound was properly bandaged, too, it would undoubtedly be negligible by tomorrow morning.

Looking out over the lake at the water that was sparkling in the sunlight, Danny contemplated what Auru had discussed. On one hand, his frustration and fear of never returning home was threatening to return. Not only had he all but proven he was now in a different world, but he was in a world that was in the middle of a war.

But on the other hand, Danny knew he was lucky in meeting Auru. Not only had the man offered him plenty of valuable information, but he also gave him a place he could potentially stay while he tried to find a way home.

Auru had seemed kind enough, and he had helped Danny out, even treating his gash from the beasts he had fought earlier. But he was still slightly nervous about going to wherever this man he just met wanted to take him.

And, even worse… Danny had a sinking suspicion that this “Castle Town” was that place filled with spirits. He shuddered at the memory of his incessant ghost sense and the people who couldn’t see him. He _really_ didn’t want to go back there. But what choice did he have? With some luck, maybe the change in the sky meant he would be visible this time.

Auru wasn’t lying when he said he would not be long. Within twenty minutes Danny spotted him approaching from the same path he had left on. Auru quickly rounded up his items (which wasn’t much; just a small pack which contained the medical supplies that he had used to assist Danny) and motioned for Danny to follow him. 

When Danny flew to the lake from the town while trying to escape that imp, the distance had not seemed very far. Therefore, he was quite dismayed to find that it was going to take significantly longer on foot.

“Six hours?” Danny repeated in disbelief. “And we have to _walk_ the whole way?”

“Unless you have a horse tucked away somewhere, yes. Furthermore, because of your wound, our pace will be particularly slow.” Auru gazed at Danny disapprovingly as he stood on his bandaged leg. “I would not even suggest leaving under normal circumstances, but since you are currently walking with only a slight limp, it would be best that we leave now to account for any extra time we may need.”

Danny groaned. This was going to be a long trip.

oOoOo 

He was right.

Ancients, he had never been more tired in his life. Or afterlife, for that matter.

Danny was used to flying long distances, and he liked to think he had great stamina when it came to traveling. He’d flown all over the United States in an alternate timeline where Freakshow had abused the power of the Reality Gauntlet. But he’d never had to walk so far before, let alone completely in his human form, which was much more prone to tiring out.

Despite Auru’s warnings that there may be danger on the road, their trip was uneventful, if not agonizingly long. Due to Danny’s injury, Auru insisted they take breaks every so often. The old man didn’t admit it, but Danny also had the feeling it was also because he saw how obviously tired out Danny got just from a short distance of walking. As a result, they reached their destination late in the evening, several hours after sunset.

Castle Town was, indeed, the same place that he had originally dropped down in. It held that same castle. Fortunately, this time around, all of its citizens looked like totally normal human beings.

Well… except for when he saw a creature that looked like a walking orange rock with tattoos. With a face. And arms and legs. But no one seemed to pay it any mind, so Danny’s exhausted brain decided that that was perfectly fine with him.

It was nighttime when they arrived, and truth be told not many people were active. He was relieved because people kept staring at him. It was because of his clothing, Auru claimed, and Danny hoped he was right and that there wasn’t something inherently strange about him. Fortunately, it was not hard to ignore the stares since he was half asleep anyway.

Auru led him down a side alleyway and to a somewhat secluded building where a single doorway was tucked away. It was dark and looked rather abandoned from what he could tell, but the sign next to the doorway had what appeared to be gibberish written on it so he had no idea if this was the bar that Auru had mentioned or not.

Auru rapped on the door and waited patiently as Danny leaned against the wall, ignoring all the pains and aches that had accumulated over the day. They only had to wait for a moment before the door opened, light spelling out into the darkened area.

A young woman stood in the doorway, scrutinizing them with a serious expression, her arms crossed. She was tall and lithe with dark hair that fell on either side of her head, and despite the hour her body was covered with light armor and a sword was sheathed at her hip. “Auru. Back already? I thought you were going to be gone for longer.”

“Good to see you Ashei. I’ve returned to get more supplies for a longer trip,” Auru replied, stepping in past the woman. He gestured for Danny to follow, so he drowsily shoved himself off the wall to do so.

The interior was warm and welcoming, lit with a cheery flickering glow from braziers hanging on the walls. A few tiny tables and chairs were scattered throughout the room and a large counter with various drinks and other food supplies were lined on shelves behind it. A large gated door was at the far end of the room behind an area separated from the rest of the room with large red curtains that were currently pulled back to reveal a chair with a piece of paper on it. However, aside from Danny, Auru, and the woman who opened the door, there was no one else present.

It was then that Danny noticed the woman (Ashei?) staring at him in open suspicion.

“And who is this?” she said bluntly.

“His name is Danny, and he needs a place to stay. Surely he can stay in one of Telma’s rooms; I’ll gladly pay her if needed.”

“Telma has gone to Kakariko with that girl who was here the other day. They left to find a doctor who could help that Zora boy.”

“Ah.” Auru looked vaguely troubled at this. “Not alone, I hope? It’s dangerous out there.”

“No, she said she found some boy who had the skills to protect them. We weren’t here or I would have offered to escort her, but it’s in the past now, yeah?”

“I see.” He frowned, looking at Danny. “Then until Telma returns, he can stay in my room. How long will she be gone?”

“Should be back tomorrow,” Ashei grunted. “But who knows with that shaman there that she likes.”

“Right.” Auru’s lips twitched in a wry grin, and Danny just felt more lost in the conversation. Finally, he was addressed directly. “Let me show you where you’ll stay, Danny.”

After being led to the room, Danny climbed into the bed. He had meant to turn to say something to Auru, perhaps thanking him or asking another question—but as soon as his head hit the pillow, he was fast asleep.

oOoOo

Auru quietly shut the door behind him, leaving the boy he had just met to his much-needed rest. He made his way back down the stairs to the main area of the Telma’s Bar, where Ashei was sitting there waiting for him with a hard expression.

“What’s the deal with the kid, Auru?” she said. “You really brought someone we don’t know to the Resistance’s base of operations? How do we know we can trust him?”

Auru shrugged, unperturbed by her harsh tone as he strode across the room to grab his pack. “He was injured and in need of help. I could not just leave him.”

“Injured?” Ashei looked surprised.

“On his left leg. I was certain he would not be able to make the full journey, but here we are.” Auru frowned thoughtfully and then met her gaze. “There is… something about him, Ashei. He healed faster than I’ve ever seen. Did you notice how when he arrived, he was tired, but not limping? It’s as though his wound is gone.”

“Then why bring him here?” she demanded. “He could be dangerous.”

“As I said, he is young and in need of assistance. Besides…” He gave her a pointed look. “Aren’t you ‘dangerous’ as well? Being dangerous does not automatically make someone an enemy. Perhaps Danny can help us.”

She scoffed. “Fine,” she said unhappily. “He can stay. But I don’t trust him yet.” She glanced up to the staircase that led to the room where Danny was currently sleeping. “And I will be keeping a very close eye on him.”

oOoOo

Danny’s night at Telma’s Bar was probably the most restful bit of sleep he’d had in… well, since he’d gotten his ghost powers, really. No ghost sense to wake him up at ungodly hours, no loud banging from his parents’ inventions to interrupt his rest, and for once no stress-induced nightmares thanks to the deep exhaustion the previous day’s trip had wrought.

When he did eventually come to, he found himself in a wooden room with gentle sunlight streaming through thin curtains covering a tiny window. The bed was simple and small, just like the nightstand next to him and the wardrobe beside him. Nonetheless, he felt way more refreshed after a night’s sleep than he had in years.

It took him a moment to remember that he was in Auru’s room—and that he wasn’t exactly in his own world anymore. He had a vague recollection of Auru helping him up some stairs. He reluctantly pulled off the covers of the bed and placed his feet on the ground, preparing to investigate.

He noticed some clothing next to the bed, and, remembering Auru’s promises to get him some clothes that wouldn’t make him stand out, he figured they were probably for him. Though he was reluctant to change, he put on the simple cloth pants and shirt before carefully folding his own clothes and placing them neatly on the bed. There was no way he was losing his favorite outfit, even if he couldn’t wear it for now.

He padded to the door and tentatively opened it, peering around. He was in a hallway with a few other doors on either end and a stairway to his right.

Cautiously glancing around, he made his way down the stairwell and found himself in the main area of the bar that he had entered last night. However, the only person present was a younger man with short red hair wearing glasses. He appeared to be only a year or two older than Danny and was sitting alone at the bar counter, head buried in a book.

Danny quietly approached him, looking around, wishing he could see Auru or even that intimidating lady from last night. But, seeing no one he recognized, he cleared his throat and said, “Um, hi?”

The man let out a high-pitched yelp, nearly flinging his book into the air in terror and whirling around, hand clutching his chest. “By the goddesses, my good man! I did not hear you at all! Where in Farore’s name did you come from?”

Danny rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. “Uh, sorry? I made some noise but I guess you didn’t hear me.”

“Yes… well, I suppose I was too involved in my book again… That does happen to me at times…”

The man still seemed quite flustered, to the point where Danny felt pity for him and quickly changed the subject. “Hey, do you know Auru? I’m looking for him.”

The mysterious man brightened, torn from his thoughts. “Yes, yes! Of course I know Auru. And he did indeed mention you! He and Ashei left this morning to run some errands around the town, but he told me to feed you when you awoke.” The man placed his book on the counter and held out a hand. “You are… Danny, correct? My name is Shad. Pleasure to meet you.” His eyes sparkled with excitement. “I must say, I’m very eager to hear more about you. Are you really from another country? Foreigners are so rare in Hyrule.”

“Uh… yes, I am,” Danny answered uncertainly.

“That’s marvelous! Where are you from? Wait, let me guess: Labrynna? No, perhaps Holodrum?”

“I’m, um, from America?”

“Wow.” Shad sounded breathless, almost reverent. “I’ve never heard of such a place. You must be from quite far. Do you mind if I ask more questions about your culture?”

As Shad prepared him breakfast, he asked so many questions that Danny’s head began to spin. Danny tried to keep up, but honestly? Most of what he asked were things he had no idea how to answer.

What even were “Oocca”, and why did Shad want to know if his hometown had them?

Countless questions later, Danny was seated at the bar, a bowl of steaming oatmeal in front of him that he ate quietly, thankful for the newfound silence. Shad had finally allowed him a break in the interrogation while he returned to his reading. Halfway through the meal, however, Danny grew curious about the book Shad was reading so intently. He slowly leaned over to get a glimpse of the text, but he was confused to find that it was completely written in an unfamiliar script. He couldn’t understand any of it.

“What language is that?” Danny asked.

Shad started and reluctantly tore his gaze away from his book to look at Danny. “What?”

“Your book,” Danny explained. “What language is that? I don’t recognize it.”

Danny should have guessed something was wrong when throughout his query, Shad’s expression grew perplexed. “Are you joking?” Shad said. Then a look of understanding crossed his face. “Oh. Perhaps… do you not know how to read?”

“Wha—I know how to read!” Danny sputtered, offended. “Just because I don’t know whatever weird language that is doesn’t mean I can’t read!”

“But… this is Hylian,” Shad answered slowly. “The same language we are speaking right now.”

“No we’re not,” Danny growled, waving his arms in frustration. “I’ve never even heard of Hylian!”

Shad blinked and peered at him over the rim of his glasses as though seeing him in a new light. “Fascinating,” he said at last. “You’re not lying, are you? How could that be possible…?” He rubbed his chin, suddenly deep in thought. “I assumed your country must have the same language and therefore the same writing system, given your fluency, but this suggests otherwise. I suppose in some ways, this does explain your unusual accent. But how could a country, particularly one so far removed from Hyrule, have developed the same spoken language, but an entirely different writing system? This raises so many questions…!”

Danny was now feeling immensely lost, his anger draining away as he realized that some sort of misunderstanding was occurring. So he responded to the only part of that statement he could really follow. “I don’t have an accent!”

This seemed to bring Shad back to the present, and he smiled brilliantly at Danny. “Of course you do, my friend!” he said cheerfully. “And this is quite the interesting conundrum you’ve brought to me! You see, I am a scholar of Hyrule’s history, but I have a passing interest in linguistics. This could be the start of an incredibly groundbreaking language study! Assuming you will allow me to ask questions about your own writing system, of course.”

Shad’s excitement was obvious, and if Danny hadn’t been so overwhelmed trying to process whatever the heck had just happened he might have found it endearing. In many ways, it reminded him of Jazz and her enthusiasm for absolutely everything related to psychology.

Unfortunately, thinking of his family brought on a pang of loneliness that he ferociously shoved back down in favor of the situation at hand.

“I might be able to do that sometime,” Danny said at last. “Just, um, not today.” Of course, he was really hoping he wouldn’t stick around long enough for that.

“Splendid!” Shad positively beamed at him. “In return, if you need to know anything about Hyrule, I would be honored to assist you! I am one of the foremost experts on our country’s history and legends.”

Danny took another bite of his meal and chewed thoughtfully. He had a so-called expert of this other world at his disposal; this was his chance to get information. But what should he ask?

An idea struck him. “Actually, I do have something to ask. Have you heard of a talking skeleton who wears armor and lives in an area surrounded by white clouds? And he appears when someone touches a stone?”

“A skeleton?” Shad rubbed his chin once again. “Well, a skeleton that walks around and wears armor sounds like a Stalfos.” At Danny’s baffled look, he continued. “You haven’t heard of Stalfos? They are monsters formed from the bodies of dead humans. Legends say that if you become lost in the forest you will turn into one, although how they are truly formed is likely through some sort of dark ritual or other evil magic.” He sighed. “However, I do not know of any Stalfos that can be summoned with a stone, nor have I heard of the strange area you described.” He tilted his head to the side, giving Danny a sidelong glance. “I’m very curious; where did you hear about this?”

“Oh… it’s just… something I heard someone say. It’s probably nothing.” Danny tried not to be disappointed; he should probably have been happy with what little information Shad _did_ have. He carried on. “What about… a goddess? Or, um…” He paused to remember the words that the skeleton had imparted to him during their encounter and he was surprised to find that they came to him rather easily.

_The song of light will abolish the mirror’s shadows. Seek the mortal goddess reborn… only then will you find salvation…_

“I’m trying to find out about a song, a mirror, and a mortal goddess. Do you know them?”

“There are many songs and mirrors throughout Hyrule’s history, so I’m not sure I could help without more detail. But a mortal goddess… Where have I heard that…?” Shad squeezed his eyes shut, seeming to think deeply. Seconds later, he snapped his fingers. “Oh, yes! I remember now! I _have_ read a similar legend!”

“You have?” Danny replied eagerly.

“Yes! You’re in luck—it’s not a story known by most modern people. My primary focus as a scholar is a race that came from the sky known as the Oocca. However, some people believe that humans once lived in the sky as well, though quite frankly I think that’s ridiculous.” He scoffed and shook his head. “Nevertheless, there is one tale about these ‘sky humans’ that I uncovered in my research. According to the legend, the goddess they worshipped sacrificed her divinity to appear in mortal form. It’s an old myth, however, and not one remembered by many to this day. It could take me a while to find the exact legend.”

“So… it’s just a story?” he exclaimed, dismayed. “Does that mean I couldn’t find her?”

“Well, many stories of Hyrule have their roots in reality. It is very possible that this goddess existed at one point, although I imagine she would be very difficult to find if she is even still around. And if she really did become mortal…” Shad shrugged. “It seems unlikely that she would still be alive.”

Danny let out a noise of frustration, resisting the urge to bang his head on the table and groan. This was his only lead, whether that skeleton (or Stalfos?) could be trusted or not, and one of the few people who could hope to help him had very few ideas.

“Although… there is someone who might know more about the myth…” Danny perked up instantly at Shad’s voice. “The shaman of Kakariko Village, Renado, may have some sort of record. The Sheikah were the best record keepers in history, although they have almost entirely died out at this point, but Kakariko was once their hometown. I mean, historical records indicate that the village probably moved sometime during the previous era, but that’s beside the point…” He trailed off before snapping back to attention. “Ahem. As I was saying, Renado may have some information. He is not a historian, but his village does have a great collection of books on ancient legends. One of those might have some of the information you seek. Furthermore, Renado is an expert on spiritual matters and he may know more about this goddess or even where she can be found.”

“Really?” Danny tried not to sound too excited. “That’s perfect! Where is this village, exactly?”

“It’s far to the east in the Eldin province, at the foot of Death Mountain.”

“Okay, east, by a mountain, got it. Great!” Danny quickly downed the last bit of his breakfast and stood up. “I’d better get going now then.”

“W-Wait a moment!” Shad stammered, standing up as well. “Kakariko is quite far, easily a day’s travel on horseback, much more on foot. And the fields are far too dangerous to go out in alone. You can’t possibly be considering going there today!”

“Oh, haha… right… Of course I’m not going today!” Danny said. “But, uh… I’m just going to go around the town for a bit, okay? Tell Auru thanks for the meal and the clothes and I’ll be back tonight. Thanks so much for the information, bye!”

Danny quickly headed for the door and threw it open, ignoring Shad’s bewildered protests behind him. He felt maybe a bit guilty for leaving so quickly, since Shad had been so incredibly friendly and helpful, but he was currently more focused and energized than he had been since falling through that portal.

He finally had a real lead, and he was going to investigate it no matter what. After all, he would do anything to get back home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this chapter is slightly late! I got really stuck when editing it. D: Sorry it's also so much dialogue -- next chapter will be much more exciting!
> 
> If last chapter was my DP headcanon chapter, this is my Zelda one lol. Lots of fun easter eggs and lore. I always assumed Telma had more rooms in the back and the Resistance members stay with her while they're in town, soooo that's a thing now. Also, fun fact, I found out that Hyrulean is spelled "Hyrulean" in almost every game except Twilight Princess. In TP it's "Hyrulian." Now I have to go change previous chapters. :(
> 
> About the Hylian language thing: I'm a huge fan of different languages being present in fiction, and this seemed like the easiest way to implement it. In Twilight Princess, the Hylian alphabet that you see on signs throughout the game is just a cipher for English. Therefore, I made the assumption that it would probably be spoken exactly the same way, but the symbols are completely different. Cue the fun hijinks that come with Danny not being able to read anything lol.
> 
> Anyway, let me know how it was! How were Auru, Shad, and Ashei? Thank you all for the feedback so far. Please continue to let me know what you think! ^^


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Danny goes to Kakariko Village to do some research.

Danny could easily fly over 100 miles per hour, so it didn’t take him long after he stepped out of the bar to transform and head to the east. Maybe he should have been a bit more worried about getting lost, but the kingdom didn’t seem too large. Besides, the towering visage of the castle served as a perfect landmark and nearly guaranteed he could always find his way back to town.

He spotted a small settlement after a while. It was not nearly as large as Castle Town, but big enough to be noticeable from his height. He landed just outside the gate that led to the village and after a furtive glance around transformed back into a human. Then, putting on his best “I-definitely-should-be-here-and-know-what-I’m-doing” face, he walked into the village.

Compared to the bustling streets of Castle Town that he had just left behind, the village was disturbingly empty. A few of those big rock creatures were wandering around, but otherwise it was completely silent. Combined with some deteriorating buildings and boarded up windows, it was truthfully a bit eerie.

He realized now that he should have asked what this Renado guy looked like at least. Sam always told him he was too impulsive for his own good, but usually he had his friends to help him plan and think things over. He was more of an act first, ask questions later kind of guy.

…He probably got that from his parents.

If he was being honest, he was a little intimidated by the rock people, so he instead decided to try and look around and see if he could find anything. It wasn’t like this place could be _completely_ abandoned, right?

Danny’s attention was immediately drawn to a large circular building isolated from the cluster of huts and shops that comprised most of the main street’s buildings. It had two simple doors at the front and the only windows present were covered by wooden shutters. Curious, he stepped closer, peeking around either side to try and figure out what it was. He didn’t see any signs, but the unusual shape and position made him suspect it had some importance. He couldn’t even look inside since the only windows present were completely boarded over up.

He stepped up to the front door and hesitated. It seemed like this was as good of a place to start as any.

He knocked on the door and waited. As he half-expected, there was no response. He glanced around warily before trying the doorknob and was somewhat surprised to find that it swung open with no resistance.

Tentative, he opened the door, praying that he wasn’t just wandering into some poor villager’s home. However, when he got inside, he was pleased to notice several bookshelves at one end of the room. This had to be the records Shad mentioned, right?

He rushed over to them and quickly selected a random book from the shelf, not even bothering to glance at the cover as he looked inside of it.

There was one just problem—

He couldn’t read anything.

“Ugh, I’m an _idiot_!” He slammed the book shut with an angry thump, rubbing his face with his hands and grumbling about _stupid language_ and _stupid books_ and _stupid portals that went to a stupid dimension with a stupid writing system_.

“Are you saying that because you snuck into my sanctuary, young man?”

Danny shouted in surprise and spun around in a battle stance. He only barely managed to stop himself from instinctively summoning ecto energy to his hands.

It was a good thing, too, for the newcomers were not ghosts but two humans, one man and one woman. Both had dark skin, though the woman’s fiery red ponytail contrasted greatly with the man’s dark locks.

Finally regaining enough sense to speak, Danny let out a breathless chuckle. “Uh, heh… is this… your sanctuary? I didn’t notice.” Seeing their bemused expressions, he added, “The door was unlocked.”

“Well,” the man said, briefly looking at the woman, “I suppose the sanctuary is open to the public. However, I would prefer that a stranger contact me before snooping around.”

“I’m sorry,” Danny said, trying to sound contrite. “I was just looking for some records. I was told to talk to someone named… um, Renado, I think?”

The woman started to laugh, giving a friendly clap on the shoulder to the man. “You’re a popular man, Renado,” she said teasingly. “Between the Zora child and this new boy, you’re very busy.”

“Wait, you mean… _you’re_ Renado?” Danny said dumbly. “That’s… that’s perfect! I’m looking for information on a mortal goddess. Or a song of light or a mirror? Or heck if you’ve heard of this one skeleton—no wait, I think it was called a Stalfos—”

“Wait a moment,” Renado said, chuckling lightly. “You haven’t even introduced yourself yet.” He took a step back, gesturing to a few nearby chairs. “How about you take a seat? Then we can discuss what your purpose in our village is.”

oOoOo

Renado was surprisingly friendly to someone who had just snuck into a building he owned.

“Would you like something to drink, Danny?” he asked.

“No thanks,” Danny answered through gritted teeth. “I just want to get my answers.”

“Of course. Just give me a moment to finish making this tea.”

Danny bit back a groan and instead clenched his fists at his side, struggling to keep his irritation off his face. Renado had been sitting with Danny and making small talk for about five minutes now. Despite Danny’s impatient attempts to steer the conversation back to his questions, he seemed determined to instead chat about inane things.

Danny had only briefly been invested in the conversation when he’d learned the identity of the woman with red hair. Her name was Telma, and she, coincidentally, was the owner of the bar that Danny had spent the night in back in Castle Town. She was delighted to hear that he had come at Shad’s suggestion and it had pretty much cleared up any suspicions the pair had had after his mistaken intrusion.

“You know, I’m surprised that someone as young as yourself was able to make it here without any weapons,” Telma spoke up. “Did anyone come with you?”

“Nope, just me.” He stared up at the ceiling, willing it to somehow throw him forward in time to a point where he would actually get _answers_. All he wanted was to go home, and he couldn’t do that until Renado answered his questions.

“Didn’t you come across the monsters in the field?” Renado questioned.

“Yes, my carriage was almost burned down,” Telma added grimly. “We were attacked many times and we only survived because of a young swordsman who escorted us.”

“Oh,” Danny said, straightening up. Crap, he really didn’t have an explanation for his miraculously uncontested trip. “Uh, you know, I was really wondering about those questions –”

“Were there no monsters?” Telma said, eyebrows raised in surprise. “Not even one? Did you take the main paths?”

“Of course I did,” he said, attempting a halfhearted laugh. Ugh, after two years with a secret identity, it was embarrassing how bad he still was at lying. “I mean… it’s not like I can fly or anything!”

Telma and Renado stared at him.

“Um… can you answer my questions now?” Was his voice always this high-pitched?

Fortunately, Renado decided to take pity on him. Or maybe he’d just finally finished the tea. “You asked about a mortal goddess, is that right? I haven’t heard of that, but I’m not a historian. Your best chance is looking through our village records.”

“I… well, yes. I _know_ that,” Danny said, frustrated. “But a bunch of books won’t help! When I came here, I forgot that I can’t read.”

Telma and Renado paused, exchanging confused looks. “You forgot that you can’t read?” Renado repeated doubtfully.

“I mean I can’t read _your_ language!” Danny crossed his arms and scowled petulantly. “It’s not my fault you guys use all these weird symbols. Someone would have to read it to me.”

“Hmm.” Renado frowned. “I can’t help you. I’m needed across the street at the inn to check on the Zora boy.”

“Well, I suppose I can help him!” Telma said brightly, standing up and walking over to Danny. “I’m staying here until tomorrow anyway. I’d be happy to have something to do.”

“Really?” he said, voice dripping with disbelief. Sure, he’d been hoping someone could help translate the books, but hadn’t been expecting this complete stranger to agree to go over boring historical texts with him.

“Sure, honey.” She walked over to the bookcase nearby, taking out a tome at random. “Besides, how hard could it be to find information about a goddess?”

oOoOo

A half hour later and it was becoming obvious that it was _very hard_.

Unfortunately, as Renado explained, many of their books had been burned in a recent invasion. Apparently the dilapidated appearance of the town was due to an attack just a few weeks prior, where several houses had been destroyed and most of the townspeople had fled. As a result, countless texts had been lost – including, Renado claimed, most of their collection specifically related to religion.

His famous Fenton luck had struck again.

“’A Hyrulian Bestiary’? That’s probably not helpful…”

“I doubt it,” Danny sighed, slumping in the chair he was sitting in. Without any books dedicated to deities, progress had been limited to grabbing books at random and skimming to see if they might have anything useful. It was, unsurprisingly, yielding very few results.

“The one next to it is called ‘Legend of the Picori’. I read this one when I was a child. It’s just a story about some tiny people the size of your thumb.”

“Nope, not helpful.” He leaned backwards, staring at the ceiling thoughtfully. “Do you think maybe ‘Ancient Civilizations’ had some info after all? Shad mentioned that there were some sky people or something who knew about this legend.”

“Perhaps,” she agreed. She pulled out two books from the shelf. “However, there are two volumes, and they are both quite thick. It will take a while to look through them, especially if we don’t know what civilization we’re looking for.”

“I guess we can always look at them later.”

She set them aside and then grabbed a new book, frowning at it. “This one is an atlas of a place called Koholint Island. I’ve never even heard of such a place.”

“Well if you haven’t heard of it, I—”

He was interrupted by a strange commotion coming from outside their door. There were a few odd shouts, and then a brief, subdued rumbling before silence fell again.

“What in the name of Din was that?” Telma muttered, stepping away from the bookshelf to approach the closed windows. An uneasy feeling settled in Danny’s stomach as he also rose to follow her. Something felt… wrong. His ghost sense wasn’t going off, but he got the same tense feeling that always preceded any attack.

“Wait,” he said, quickly grabbing her arm and pulling her away from the window she was approaching. “I-I don’t think opening a window is a good idea. What if something dangerous is outside?”

She regarded him with a dubious look but did not step any further, much to his relief. “What could possibly—”

A loud bang. Something slammed against the door. A guttural snarl could be heard coming from the other side.

Telma took a step back, her eyes wide. “We need to go,” she whispered. “There is a cellar—”

Another slam. The harsh sound of splintered wood made them both flinch. The door was not holding up well.

“Get behind me,” Danny said lowly, stepping between Telma and the door.

“I’m impressed by your bravery, but now is not the time to be foolish!” she hissed back. “You have no weapons, and whatever is out there does not sound friendly!”

Silently, Danny agreed. With her here, he wouldn’t be able to go ghost, leaving him with nothing but his fists. He must have looked ridiculous with his scrawny form standing protectively in front of this tall adult woman. But what else could they do?

Besides, he’d be a poor protector if he let something stupid like _human limitations_ stop him.

Another loud crack resounded, and the door began to cave inward. A large shape could be seen just behind the newly formed gaps in the wood. Danny took a deep breath.

This was it.

The door was flung off its hinges, the splintered pieces flying across the room and narrowly missing Danny and Telma, slamming against the wall behind them and falling with a crash.

A looming figure was there, its dark form contrasting the midday light now pouring in through the doorway. It was standing on its legs to its full height, towering over them with a shadow that was just a bit too long and dark to be natural. Despite the brightness its red highlights glowed a harsh red and the spikes on the back of its head stretched out like grotesque tentacles.

It was, Danny realized with a sinking feeling, the same type beast that he had fought when he first entered the portal to this world.

Without wasting another instant, it lunged forward, displaying speed that was just as inhuman as the last pair he faced. Fortunately, Danny too had some not-quite-human abilities and he was able to jerk himself and Telma out of the way just in time. The creature crashed into the statue that was behind them, send the stone bird-like figure toppling to the floor with a bang. The monster merely shook its head and turned back around.

“Run!” Danny yelled, shoving Telma away as the beast came in for another strike. He prayed that she would listen to him, but he didn’t dare turn around to check as he widened his stance, prepared to face its tackle head-on.

To his surprise, it abruptly turned to move around him, veering to the left. He tried to correct himself, agilely leaping to the side, but he was too slow and only managed to watch as it slammed into Telma instead, clutching her with its uncomfortably long fingers.

“Let _go_!” she yelled at the monster, struggling in its grasp by ineffectively hitting its arms with her fists. He appreciated her courage, but he knew that antagonizing the scary monster thing was probably a bad idea while it was holding you.

The monster didn’t seem intent on letting her go as it started to take off in the direction of the open doorway. “Oh no you don’t,” Danny growled, sprinting forward. He crashed into the creature’s side, knocking it off course and shoving it away from the exit. It was clearly not expecting the power of the blow (courtesy of his ghostly strength, something he’d become much better at tapping into in human form as the years went on) and it skidded awkwardly, trying to regain its balance. It righted itself depressingly quickly, snarling in his direction.

“You might have a shield for a face, but you’re sure not good at blocking things!” he taunted, trying to provoke its ire to prevent it from attempting another escape.

Though his words almost definitely meant nothing to the creature, it still roared and dashed at him, Telma grasped in one hand as the other one reached up to meet him. Danny merely braced himself with both hands and grabbed the offending creature’s outstretched limb, momentarily skidding backward from its momentum. Teeth clenched, he grappled with it, trying to get a strong enough grip to pin it down in the ground so he could safely get Telma. This thing was powerful, but unfortunately for it, Danny was used to fighting powerful foes, and it was clearly not at its full strength with only one hand available to use.

With a grunt of exertion, he pinned the beast on the ground. Snarling, it released its grip of Telma, if only temporarily, to try and push him off—but Danny simply grabbed its wrist, wrestling the hand away from its former captive. “Go!” he cried.

She did not hesitate; she slipped away from the pair who were wrestling. He was fairly preoccupied with his struggle, but he was pretty sure he caught her pausing by the doorway to the sanctuary, turning back to stare at the pair. Out of the corner of his eye, he thought he saw a glint of something on her face—a mixture of horror and awe.

He wasn’t sure which of those was worse.

“Get… get help!” he gasped around his struggles, the beast finally managing to shove him aside. It got back up, snarling directly in his face. Danny scrunched up his nose indignantly. “How do you even make that noise? You don’t have a mouth!”

At last, Telma ran out of the doorway. He sighed in relief, sidestepping another of the creature’s strikes.

Now that there were no witnesses, he no longer had to hold back.

He smirked. “Okay, big guy,” he said, his eyes flashing an unearthly green, “this fight just got a whole lot fairer.”

oOoOo

Telma hurried through the streets of Kakariko Village to the Elde Inn, not daring to spare a glance back at the boy who had bravely stood up to that unnatural monster—a Shadow Beast, Link had called them. She was horrified to discover that the Gorons were unconscious on the ground outside of the sanctuary. She hoped that they weren’t injured, or worse…

She feared that if she thought about it too much, she just might return to help Danny, despite what he had said… despite what she had seen.

How in Din’s name did such a small boy manage to hold back a Shadow Beast with his bare hands, when not even Gorons could stand up to it?

She threw open the doors to the inn, calling up the stairs where she knew Renado was. “We need help at the sanctuary, quickly! There’s a Shadow Beast attacking!”

Renado emerged from the room above, followed by the small bodies of Colin and Luda peeking out curiously as well as the concerned face of Ilia. “Impossible,” Renado murmured, his face ashen. “How could it have gotten through the gates?”

“It took out all the Gorons. We will need something strong to fight it off.”

“But… Link just left this morning…” Colin said, his voice shaking in fear.

Renado took a step forward, examining Telma before his eyes widened. “Telma… where is Danny?”

Telma’s expression told him all he needed to know.

After a stern command to the children to stay put, he rushed out the door with Telma.

They cautiously approached the sanctuary, but they heard no sound from within. Telma’s heart leapt into her throat. She’d only been gone for a moment; surely the beast hadn’t already gotten to Danny…

Renado’s face told her he was thinking along the same lines. “We do not know if it is still in there, but it is quite likely that… Danny is gone,” he said softly. “We will need a weapon if we have any hope to confront it.”

“We may need to go to Barnes and get some of his bombs…” Telma began, but she trailed off when they heard a soft thump from within the doorless sanctuary.

The pair stiffened, straining to listen for more noise. Before long, they picked up the quiet sound of footsteps approaching their position right beyond the wall, just next to where the wooden doors had been before the beast had torn them off its hinges. Telma took a step back, sending a frantic look to Renado, who also looked just as ready to flee.

The footsteps grew closer and closer, until…

A shadow stepped out from beyond the doorway, and Telma raised her fists and yelled, “If you have done anything to that nice boy, I swear I will—”

Then she blinked. She looked at Renado. He blinked as well and looked at her. Then they both turned back to the figure, who was decidedly not a terrifying monster, but rather a teenaged boy with his hands raised in a gesture of surrender.

“Sorry if I scared you,” Danny said sheepishly. “I, uh, was just coming to get you.”

“You… but… where is the beast?” Telma questioned, bewildered. Renado seemed stunned into silence.

“Oh, yeah, that thing… uh… I kinda got rid of it?” He rubbed the back of his neck nervously. “At least, it’s not gonna bother anyone anymore. I mean, as long as it doesn’t suddenly get back up like the other ones…”

“ _O-Other ones_?”

He seemed to realize that he’d made a mistake and verbally backpedalled. “N-Not like I’ve fought one of those things before or anything! But I’ve um… heard stories about people who kill one of these things, and then it just comes back to life. So you should probably watch out for that. But also its body kinda… disappeared? It turned into blue squares and they flew away. So I guess it’s dead?” He bit his lip. “That… does mean it’s dead, right?”

As the boy shuffled uneasily in front of them, his expression becoming more worried the longer they failed to respond, Renado finally managed to snap out of his shocked stupor. “I would not worry about that,” he said. “A friend of ours named Link said those things always turn into those particles when they are defeated. According to him they find portals and vanish into them. It’s as good as dead.”

“O-Oh. Good…”

As Danny relaxed, the tension in his body fading away, Telma stepped behind him to peer into the sanctuary room, which was just as she had left it, except minus one Shadow Beast. That was surprising, considering how much damage it had done in just its first few minutes in the room. Just how long had Danny fought the creature after she left? And… she looked more closely at the wall by the door, noting two small black patches, almost like singe marks on the wood. “What is this from?”

“What?” Danny stepped into the room to see what she was referring to. Telma watched as his face rapidly morphed into surprise, then fear, before finally settling on a guarded expression. He let out a laugh just a bit too forced to be real. “Not sure. That was probably there before.”

“I do not recognize those marks,” Renado commented, joining them to stare at the wall. “It seems like something burned them. But what could the beast have done to make those marks?”

Telma looked at the boy. His posture was still overly casual, but she could see the barely concealed panic behind his eyes. “Danny,” she said, “how exactly did you defeat that beast?”

He froze. Clearly that was the one question he didn’t want to answer. Silence stretched between them.

Danny finally looked away, unable to meet her gaze any longer. “A-Actually, I think I gotta go. I can tell you about it some other time, okay? But seriously, I just got really lucky. Those things are dangerous. But I gotta head back to Castle Town or… um, it’ll be dark and hard to travel at night, right?”

His lie was flimsy. It was barely midday; he was in no danger of running out of time. She regarded him suspiciously for a moment—just long enough for her to see him twitch in discomfort, obviously hoping she would dismiss the entire thing and not ask anymore questions. She sighed and ultimately relented. “Very well. Are you sure you don’t want someone else to travel with you, honey? Like I told you, I’m going back to Castle Town tomorrow. We can let you stay at the inn if you want; its owners fled when the beasts originally attacked, so you can rest there for free.”

“Nope, no, thanks for the offer, but I really gotta go.” He stepped backwards, throwing a hasty grin in Renado’s direction. “Thank you for letting me use your library. And thanks, Telma, for helping me find books.”

“You didn’t even find what you were looking for!”

“No, but… well, I don’t know where I’ll look next, but there’s got to be something out there, right? Anyway, see ya.” He turned and began walking to the entrance of the town.

“Wait.” Danny halted in his tracks at Renado’s voice, glancing back over his shoulder. “Danny, if you need someone with more information, I believe I may know of some people who can help you. There are ancient Sages. It is difficult to know where to find them, but… I heard rumors that they were recently seen at Arbiter’s Grounds.” He inclined his head. “I’m afraid that’s an extremely difficult journey to make, and the rumor may be nonsense, but the Sages know everything about the history of Hyrule. Some say they have even been around since its creation. If anyone can help you, it would be them.”

Danny smiled. Telma marveled at the way it lit up his face and made him seem much younger than he was—or, perhaps, made him seem just as young as he _actually_ _was_. He really was just a boy, younger even than Link. “Thank you,” Danny said sincerely, his first sincere show of courtesy since they caught him sneaking in. “I’ll check it out.”

“It is the least we can do for you after you defended our town from a Shadow Beast of all things,” he said lightly. “Safe travels, Danny.”

“Stay out of trouble, honey,” Telma added. “And… thank you. For helping me.”

“Sure, don’t mention it. And, uh, I kind of mean that literally. It was nothing. Bye!” With a final wave, Danny turned and walked to the entrance, disappearing behind the corner.

As soon as he was gone, Telma turned to Renado. “There is something very, _very_ strange going on with that boy,” she murmured.

“Do you think _he_ is responsible for these marks?” Renado asked, placing a hand on them.

“I wouldn’t doubt it. You saw his reaction. And he was able to hold off the Shadow Beast with his bare hands! He wrestled it to the ground and pried me out of its grip single-handedly.” She drew in a shaky breath. “That is not human strength. I doubt even Link could fight one of those things without his sword.”

Renado frowned, drawing his hands away from the wall, examining the blackness that had rubbed off on his fingers. It certainly had the texture of soot, but instead of carrying the scent of ash, it smelled almost like rot. It also had a slightly green tint to it. “This was not made by a normal fire,” he noted. “Something odd happened here.” He looked up at her. “Do you think Danny is a threat? Perhaps even an agent of our enemies?”

“…No,” she said after a moment of thought. “I can’t imagine him hurting anyone. But he is hiding something.” She turned to stare out the door, toward the entrance of the town where Danny had disappeared. “I just hope it’s not too big of a secret for him to handle.”

oOoOo

Zant stormed into Hyrule Castle’s throne room, sending an unfortunately positioned Shadow Beast skittering backwards from fear of its master. How could his beast have _failed_? He sent it on a simple mission: retrieve the descendant of the Sage of Spirit, who he discovered had been in Kakariko Village, and bring her back alive. The descendant had not been skilled in combat, and the town had no guard to speak of. The Hero was supposedly in the temple at the bottom of Lake Hylia, so who could have possibly stopped his beast?

He snarled at nothing. He would get his sacrifice, one way or another. If not the barkeeper, then he would send his beasts farther away to get one of the Zora or Goron descendants. And if those failed…

Well, maybe he would just have to try opening the portal without a Sage descendant. And if it didn’t work, what were the lives of a few measly Hylians in the grand scheme of his master’s plan?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh gosh, this chapter hated me. I'm so sorry this is super late. This chapter was just SO difficult. I actually ended up chopping it in half because it was just ridiculous how much was supposed to happen here. I also took some artistic liberties with Kakariko's sanctuary because like, that place is empty as crap, so... yeah. There are seats and a library now, I guess?
> 
> Thank you all so much for your bookmarks/kudos/comments so far. I'm eternally grateful, especially those who give specific criticism/examples of what they like. You're all super great!


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With some luck, the Sages might finally be able to give Danny the answers he seeks...

Danny sat on the rooftop of a building in Castle Town, hands huddled around his legs as he stared at the sunset. He had returned from Kakariko a while ago, but instead of trying to figure out how to get to Arbiter’s Grounds, he’d found himself settled down on a rooftop, still in ghost form, blankly watching the busy Hyrulians go about their days below.

Clouds were beginning to gather in the sky, evidence that a storm was likely brewing above. It made him feel uncharacteristically melancholy, the lies from the morning draining him in a way they rarely did at home. He lied to his family and everyone else in Amity Park _constantly_ , but for some reason his most recent fabrications had taken a heavier toll on him.

He was just plain _tired_. Tired of dealing with all these unfamiliar locations, tired of meeting these new people. At least at home he had Sam and Tucker, who knew pretty much everything about himself and his double life. Here he had no one. He’d gladly take fighting the Box Ghost for the fifth time in a week over sitting here in a foreign world, far from home, utterly alone and unsure if this nonstop search he was on for a stupid story character of all things would even pan out in the end. He even missed school. He even missed _Dash_. That’s how bad things were.

But even if he was tired, could he stop? _No_. Because if he did ever want to see his friends and family again, he had to keep going. He couldn’t afford to waste time, not when his town could be in danger from the dozens of vindictive ghosts that would undoubtedly be _thrilled_ to take a shot at Amity Park while its protector was gone.

When the sun started to disappear behind the hulking form of the castle, bringing with it the beginnings of a light rainfall, Danny stood up. He had promised Shad that he would be back later that night, so it was probably time to head back to the bar.

He flew into an empty alleyway and finally de-transformed and started walking toward where he remembered Telma’s Bar to be. ~~~~

He reached the entrance to the bar and knocked, waiting somewhat impatiently as the rain water dripped down his now-soaking clothes. He wished he could go intangible to dry himself, but he was afraid that might bring up too many questions.

The door eventually opened, revealing Auru. “Ah, hello, Danny. You’re back,” Auru greeted. “Did you enjoy the town?”

“What?” he blurted—and then he remembered his cover story of exploring Castle Town. “Oh. Uh, yeah, it was great. Nice place you got here.”

“Glad to hear you enjoyed it. Come on in, we have some soup.”

Danny belatedly realized that he was, in fact, _extremely_ hungry. He eagerly hurried inside, not even noticing as Auru shut the door behind him. He took a seat at the bar, where Ashei and Shad were both sitting, conversing idly. They paused at his approach.

“Welcome back!” Shad said to him as Danny sat down.

“You liked Castle Town, yeah?” said Ashei.

“Um, sure. It was great.” Auru placed a bowl in front of him, and Danny sent him a grateful smile.

“I must be honest, my friend, I was a bit concerned when you left so suddenly this morning,” Shad said, leaning forward. “Where did you go exactly?”

“Uh, you know. Just… around.” Danny shoved a spoonful of soup in his mouth and pretended not to notice as Shad sent a significant look to Ashei, veiled suspicion in his gaze. He fought back a grimace. The empty feeling from the rooftop threatened to return, but he pushed it back down. It’s not like he could just tell them the truth. Who knew how they’d react if they knew he was a ghost of all things. Did they even believe in ghosts? He made a mental note to ask about that later, just in case.

“Well,” Auru said, coming to take a seat next to the boy, “I wanted to let you know that Telma will be returning tomorrow. She should arrive sometime in the late afternoon. I know I agreed to let you stay, but this is her establishment. It will ultimately be up to her whether you can stay any longer.”

“Oh, okay.” Danny was suddenly glad that he’d met Telma earlier in the day. Hopefully she’d take pity on him. “Thanks, by the way. I’ll… try to find some way to pay you back.”

“No need,” Auru chuckled. “I used to work for the Royal Family, my boy. I have plenty of rupees to spare.”

Danny had no idea what a rupee was, but he nodded anyway.

Danny returned to his meal and Auru opened a book, while Shad and Ashei resumed their conversation (which seemed to be about combat styles of somewhere called Snowpeak?). After a moment, Danny recalled his dilemma for his next goal and addressed Auru once again. “Hey, have you heard of some place called Arbiter’s Grounds?”

Auru blinked at him in surprise. “Why… yes. In fact, I’m studying the desert that houses it. It’s my area of expertise. I’m planning on heading there sometime tomorrow to do more research.”

Well, that was perfect! Danny grinned. “Awesome! Can you tell me where it is?”

“It is where I met you. On a cliff overlooking Lake Hylia.” Auru frowned. “Why do you ask?”

Should he tell the truth? “I… was thinking about maybe going there? I thought the Sages there might be able to answer some of my questions.”

“The Sages?” Auru said, surprised. “Not many people know about them. Who told you they were there?”

Ah, crap. “J-Just someone around town!” he replied quickly.

“I see,” Auru said, clearly in disbelief. “Well, I hate to disappoint you, but the cliff is almost impossible to climb. I have been trying to find a way up for a while now, but I have had no luck.”

That wouldn’t be a problem, Danny was sure. Normal accessibility didn’t matter when one could fly and move through solid objects. “Oh, that’s too bad. Good to know.” Laughter cut through their conversation as Shad began chuckling at something Ashei had said, and even the usually serious woman had a small smile on her face. Auru gave them a fond look.

Despite the pleasant atmosphere, something twisted in Danny’s gut at the sight. He suddenly had a strong urge to get away.

He faked a yawn and stretched, pushing his half-eaten bowl away from him. “Aww man, I’m tired. Mind if I turn in early?”

Auru frowned, and Danny sensed disappointment from him, though he wasn’t entirely sure why. “Are you sure? The rest of us will be up for a while more to chat. Perhaps you’d be interested in challenging me to a game of chess?”

Now Danny was starting to feel slightly guilty, but he held firm. “No, sorry. I’m exhausted. Long day, you know?”

“…Very well. Good night, Danny,” Auru said.

Danny quickly nodded and hurried up the stairs to the room he’d been provided, slamming the door behind him as he stopped and considered his churning emotions.

There was nothing wrong with Shad, Ashei, and Auru. They were extremely friendly and helpful, and he normally wouldn’t have minded spending some time with them. But seeing them talking so freely with each other like that, so cheerful and close?

It reminded him far too much of home. It _hurt_.

He exhaled deeply and mentally chided himself for his lack of focus. He should be thinking about what he would do at Arbiter’s Grounds tomorrow when he met the Sages, not…

…how Shad’s enthusiastic questions reminded him of Jazz, how Ashei’s perpetually frowning face reminded him of Sam, how Auru reminded him of Frostbite with his welcoming personality, how their laughter made him think of late nights playing video games with Tucker, how much his parents would love exploring the possibilities of this new world, how Clockwork _still hadn’t shown up even though he had to know because he was the **master of goddamn time**_ —

Breathe in…

Breathe out.

He placed a hand over his chest where his heart was pounding rapidly, right next to the nearly imperceptible humming of his ghost core. He was just being stupid. Just stupid, stupid feelings that really didn’t matter.

Trying not to think about what the stinging wetness behind his eyes might mean, he blinked to clear his blurry vision and sat down on the bed, staring at the wall.

Even with his efforts to redirect his thoughts, they continued to stray back. It was foolish. He knew that. There really was nothing to worry about. He had a plan on where to go next, which would hopefully result in a meeting with some people who would be able to finally point him in the right direction. With some luck it might even be his _final_ direction, and he could be back… back in Amity Park by the end of tomorrow.

Except… he wasn’t sure that he was even _capable_ of waiting until tomorrow without falling apart.

It was late, it was raining, he could feel fatigue settling on his a heavy weight, he told Auru and Shad and Ashei that he was going to sleep, he hadn’t had much time to plan—there were a million reasons that he shouldn’t go tonight. And yet…

He turned his gaze to the window, staring intently. A roar of thunder crashed outside as though in response to his rebellious thoughts, but his mind was already running a hundred miles a minute, too far gone to be dissuaded.

He knew where Arbiter’s Grounds was now, thanks to Auru. There was nothing physically stopping him; even the others in the main area of the bar wouldn’t be able to stop him if he used his powers. And the sooner he got to Arbiter’s Grounds… well…

He stood, letting invisibility fall over his form.

oOoOo

Midna was dying.

The thought thrummed in Link’s head as he sprinted across Hyrule Field with all the considerable swiftness his wolf body allowed. He didn’t know much about Twili like Midna, but he knew that they couldn’t withstand the light for long. And Zant had subjected her to the full power of a light spirit…

Each of her ragged breaths, interrupted only by the pattering of his paws the constant splash of raindrops, renewed his terror. He didn’t dare look back at her (limp, frail, _unmoving_ ) body, instead remaining fixed on the castle ahead. Midna wasn’t supposed to be still. She had a big, bold personality, her presence demanding your attention. To see her so helpless…

He made his way through Castle Town, ignoring the screams of citizens as the wild beast charged through the streets, letting no one stop him. He had to get to Princess Zelda. She was the only one who could help Midna now. He knew that he couldn’t take the main castle gate—it was far too well-defended, and as a wolf he wouldn’t be able to the heavy gates anyway—but he vaguely remembered Telma mentioning a path in her bar that led to the castle. He hoped she was being serious.

Link mentally berated himself when he was thrown out of the bar by the people within—he was an animal, of _course_ the humans would throw him out. Luckily, with the help of Louise he was able to climb to the rafters in the attic of the bar, which the cat claimed would lead him to the castle’s waterway.

He could easily see the people below him as he made his way across the rafters, which meant that if they looked up, they could see him as well. He tried to place all of his focus into remaining as soundless as possible so that he would not draw their attention. To his relief, the bar was still closed to the public, meaning there were only a small handful of people below. The group included an old man, a pale woman wearing light armor, and a bookish young man with glasses.

His mind strayed to something Telma had said when he’d seen her in Kakariko. Something about a group that stayed in her bar to try and fight for Hyrule. A resistance of some sort.

He absently listened to their friendly, frivolous conversation for a beat until Midna shifted on his back with a particularly painful rasp. At once he was pulled out of his reverie, his urgency returning full force as he traipsed across the ropes above the rafters as quickly and quietly as possible. He was nearly to the other side, about to head into the final passageway on the other side of the bar, when his sensitive lupine ears twitched at the soft swoosh of a door being opened.

Despite his better judgement to keep moving, he peered down, wondering who could possibly be opening the door at this hour, especially while the proprietress was not at home. But he realized that the sound had not come from the front door, but rather the gate-like door at the back of the room next to the table the three strangers were sitting around.

Link stared at the door, eyes narrowed. At first, he wondered if it had just been a breeze or something since nothing seemed to be there. None of the people at the table had reacted to the noise, but it was possible the sound was simply too quiet for human ears.

But then an unusual sensation caught his attention, a subtle aura that nudged his senses. He nearly flinched as he registered the almost foreboding scent, a feeling of death emanating from the ground floor. It carried the semblance of a freshly dead corpse, or a creature teetering on the edge of the afterlife, an incredibly unique scent that he was certain he’d perceived only once before.

No matter what his eyes were telling him, someone—or something—was in the room that no one could see. And he had a sinking suspicion that he knew who.

He concentrated, allowing the familiarly foreign instincts to flood his mind, casting the room into a dark colorless void that only he could see. A wolf did not need to rely on vision alone, and he had plenty of abilities that allowed him to see otherwise invisible spirits.

What he found was… a boy? Sure enough, Link could sense an invisible person silently making their way across the room. And he _recognized_ him.

It was the same boy, the one with white hair and a slightly glowing form. He shuffled toward the door, throwing frequent glances back at the table of chatting friends, a troubled expression on his face.

Link froze, conflicted. This boy was wandering around Telma’s Bar with unknown powers and unknown intentions. He hadn’t seen the boy since their first meeting in Castle Town, and though he had clearly been trying to save that woman, it made him uneasy that the boy would turn up here of all places, especially with the incredibly suspicious way he was acting. And his aura was _unnatural_. The animal part of Link’s body demanded he fight back or flee. Should he find some way to warn the Hylians in the bar? Or should he confront that boy?

Unfortunately, a single glance back at the ailing passenger on his back reminded him that he had little choice in the matter right now.

He turned back to the exit of the bar, but not before mentally taking a note to investigate this boy later. Something told Link that this would not be the boy’s final appearance.

oOoOo

Thunder crashed as Danny flew above Lake Hylia. He stayed intangible to avoid the heavy raindrops that pelted the water below. Danny found himself flying over the lake once again, which he had learned was Lake Hylia. The Gerudo Desert was just beyond, on top of a cliff face.

He eventually reached an enormous building in the center of the desert which he assumed must be his destination. It towered high in the sky, with several pillars spiraling up on its top. A giant statue of a woman was in the center of the pillars.

Even with the building’s imposing appearance, none of this was what initially caught Danny’s attention. Instead, as soon as he made it within range, a full shudder went through his body, a puff of chilled air forced out of his lungs.

He halted midair. There were ghosts in there. A _lot_ of them.

He hovered uncertainly, cautiously staring at the tower. It had been a long time since he’d felt this many spirits in one place. Even back in Amity Park, he usually only had his ghost sense go off like this in full-scale invasions. That wasn’t a comforting thought, to say the least.

He floated closer to the top of the tower, debating where to enter and search for the sages. He was extremely wary of going inside, where a potential army of ghostly foes might await him. But the top of the tower seemed empty aside from the statue.

Fortunately, he did not have to deliberate for long, for an echoing voice called out to him.

“You of both the world of living and dead… why have you come here?”

He wildly looked around—he was certain he hadn’t seen anyone, and he was so high up that it made no sense that someone could speak so clearly to him up here. So who was it?

He then spotted six… people?... standing atop six of the seven pillars, their balance inhumanly impressive. Though they looked like old men in long robes, their completely white and glowing bodies suggested otherwise.

“Who are you guys?” he asked warily, unsure whether he should be floating far, far away from these people or getting closer so as not to be rude. Their bright aura suggested they might be ghosts, but his ghost sense was pointedly directing him toward the interior of the building, not the exterior.

“We are the Sages who were appointed by the goddesses and have guarded this chamber since ancient times,” one of the men said.

“We have not met a creature such as yourself,” said another.

“Why do you approach us?” asked another.

Mildly creeped out by their odd habit of finishing each other’s thoughts but sensing no imminent threat, Danny drifted closer to then. “So if you’re the Sages, someone told me you guys know everything about history around here. Do you know about a mortal goddess?

“Yes. She was once a student of ours. However…”

“…we are reluctant to share this information with a creature such as yourself.”

Danny rolled his eyes. What was it with people in this world calling him a creature? He’d met an imp and rock people and yet _he_ was the weird one? He bit down his irritation and decided to resort to begging. “Please. I promise, all I want to do is go home, and this is the only hope I have. A weird skeleton guy told me to find this goddess—a Stalfos, I think Shad called it? The skeleton was in this weird white world and he had one eye and a sword…”

Danny stopped as a murmur of surprise went through the Sages. Clearly he’d said something important, though what, he had no idea.

The rest of the Sages looked to the first Sage who had spoken, who appeared to be the leader. He spread his arms out in a peaceful gesture. “If the ancient Hero has set you on this path, then it can be nothing but fate that has brought you here.”

“The royal family of Hyrule is descended from the mortal goddess. Her power always lies within the firstborn daughter of the family.” said another Sage. “If you go to the castle, you will find the Princess Zelda, who may give you the answers you desire.”

He nearly leaped for joy. Finally, a true lead! Sure, getting an audience with royalty probably wasn’t going to be easy, but at least it was something. “That’s perfect!” he exclaimed, turning to the castle that he could just barely see in the distance, towering over the rest of the land. “Then all I need to do now is fly there and—”

He was cut off by a loud ringing noise, a short jolt that sounded similar to rushing water that boomed across the kingdom.

And before his eyes, Hyrule Castle was covered in a pyramid-like barrier of dark brown and orange, a complex grid-like design on its surface that nearly obscured the view of the structure.

Danny could only watch as the castle was completely covered, blocked out from the world.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter isn't as polished as most, but it also wasn't as hard to write so I figured it was fine to upload now. Hope you enjoy, and thank you SO much for all the support. You guys seriously make my day every time you comment.
> 
> If you're here within a few days of this being posted, go check out the Zelda Dungeon Marathon on Twitch! They're streaming Zelda games July 11th-14th for charity. I attended last year, and I was supposed to go this year but unfortunately covid travel restrictions told me no. Lucky for you guys, that meant I was able to get this chapter out. XD Anyway, I'll still be racing Skyward Sword on Sunday evening remotely, so check it out and say hi! ^^


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Danny meets the light spirit Lanayru. It... doesn't go well.

He stared at the barrier that had formed around the castle in utter dismay.

One second, he had been talking to the Sages about how he had to go there. And the next…?

“Did… did it just…” He turned toward the Sages although seeking confirmation that he was imagining this.

“The king of shadows seeks to confine the princess and steal her power,” said the first Sage.

“You will not be able to pass through this barrier he has created, even with your abilities.”

“But… But I…” Danny was at a loss. For the first time in the past 24 hours he had finally felt like something was going right. And now…? “That’s… impossible! I can phase through that barrier. It’s not like it’s a ghost shield!”

“The king of shadows uses an ancient magic that will prevent entry by any means.”

“ _Magic_?” Danny groaned. “Then what do I do? How can I get to the mortal goddess?”

“If you still wish to meet the princess…”

“…you should speak with one of the spirits of light.”

“Spirits of light?” Danny repeated. Now why did that sound familiar? “Oh! Like the ‘Light Spirit’ that Auru visited at the lake?”

“Indeed. The spirits are more connected to the goddesses than us. They may be able to help you.”

“Go, creature of death and life. We wish you good fortune on your quest.”

“May the goddesses be with you…”

In the blink of an eye, the Sages vanished. He jolted in surprise—one second they had been there, they next they were gone. Sure, he was used to others going invisible, but for them to all do it at the exact same time?

Yeah, these Sages were definitely creepy. He really hoped he wouldn’t have to meet them again any time soon.

oOoOo

Telma breathed in the air of Castle Town, a smile on her face. She had enjoyed Kakariko (and Renado’s presence) but there really was nothing like home. Ilia had elected to stay in the village to watch over the Zora boy as he recovered, but unfortunately Telma didn’t have that luxury: she had a bar to run.

She glanced back at her traveling companion, who was looking decidedly less thrilled at their surroundings. Rusl was a country man through and through, and he clearly didn’t appreciate the hustle and bustle of city life as she did. Telma vaguely wondered if Link felt the same way about Castle Town; he and Rusl were, after all, from the same tiny farming village of Ordon in southern Hyrule.

Seeing Rusl’s discomfort only reminded her of how lucky she’d been to have him escort her. He’d appeared the very morning she had been set on leaving, arriving in Kakariko Village to check on the safety of his son and the other Ordonian children who had taken sanctuary there. Rusl was also a member of the so-called Resistance that stayed at her bar, albeit a much more recent recruit who had not been around nearly as much as Shad or Ashei or Auru. It was a mere fortunate coincidence that he’d arrived in the village that very day, and even more fortunate that he admitted he had been planning on going to Castle Town after stopping at the village anyway. Truthfully, she’d been quite worried about her trip back to town, considering how disastrous their first trip had gone. Who knew where she and Ilia would be now if not for the heroics of Link.

When she mentioned the young boy who had saved them to Rusl, the man had tilted his head back and laughed boisterously. It turned out that he not only knew Link, but he had personally trained the boy. The goddesses were undoubtedly smiling on her today. Not to mention this only made her more confident in her decision to extend an offer to the boy to join their group.

Their trip had gone relatively well; there were not nearly as many enemies on the field as last time. However, they had run into three Shadow Beasts along the way. Rusl had managed to fend them off long enough for them to escape, but he had suffered a minor injury on his arm. Luckily, it wasn’t too deep, but it would need to be treated when they arrived.

They eventually arrived at her bar. Telma unlocked the door and stepped inside, still beaming cheerfully. It was good to be back. Shad was inside and greeted her.

“Where are the others?” Rusl asked, scanning the room.

“Auru went to Lake Hylia to do more research on the desert, and Ashei is out in the field going through sword techniques, I believe,” Shad explained.

Rusl walked to reach behind the bar to grab the medical supplies that he knew were there. “I hope Ashei isn’t planning on staying out of town too long. Those dark beasts are everywhere these days. We were even attacked along the way.”

“Don’t let her hear you say that!” Shad laughed. “She would be offended to think you were implying she could not protect herself.”

“Right, of course. But unfortunately, I don’t believe anyone can defeat those creatures on their own. Except, perhaps, for Link,” Rusl murmured.

Telma thought back to her stay in Kakariko, and, without thinking, said, “Or Danny.”

Shad’s eyes suddenly snapped to her, eyebrows furrowed in confusion. “Danny?”

“Who is Danny?” Rusl asked.

She shook her head, smiling. “You wouldn’t know him, Rusl. I only met him yesterday, but in that brief time he saved my life by fighting off a Shadow Beast all on his own. He mentioned he knew you, Shad. Said something about staying at the bar.”

Shad pursed his lips, pondering deeply. “Yes… well, I did indeed meet a young man named Danny. But… he was in town the whole day. I saw him in the morning, and he returned that night.”

“But…” Telma blinked, now as bewildered as the young man. Rusl looked between the two of them, curious. “He couldn’t possibly have travelled from Kakariko to Castle Town and back again, all within that single day. Yet I saw him there.”

Shad sighed. “Sounds like the same boy,” he groused. “Danny has been extremely odd since arriving here. He also slipped out of his room this morning, though I can’t imagine how. And now he can be in two places at once?”

“Perhaps he can duplicate himself,” Rusl said, half-joking.

Telma snorted. “Sounds like you’ve been reading too many stories about the Hero of the Four Sword.”

The older man shrugged. “You never know. He could be a mage of some sort.”

Telma and Shad’s eyes widened in perfect sync. “I… hadn’t thought of it that way!” Telma said. “There _were_ strange markings on the wall in the room where he fought the Shadow Beast…”

“Goodness, can you imagine? A real mage!” Shad exclaimed, enlivened by the prospect. “Magic is so rare in this day and age. And I have never heard of someone who is not Hylian having any capabilities! I have so many questions!”

“Now, wait, Shad. We still don’t know this for sure,” Telma reminded him, trying to curb her own enthusiasm at the same time. Magic was an incredible boon in Hyrule, but one that had become so scarce that it was pretty much relegated only to history books. Aside from their princess, she didn’t think there was a single person in the kingdom who could wield it. The thought that someone with such power could be a normal person hiding among them was alluring.

“Do you have any other explanations for him being in two towns on the opposite ends of Hyrule in the same day?” he insisted, his hands gesturing wildly in the air as they often did when he was excited. “I had some theories of my own, but this makes so much more sense! It explains everything, including why his abilities seem to be so varied. It fits!”

Telma sighed, placing her hands on her hips with a shake of her head. “We just can’t be sure until we can ask him directly. And he’s obviously hiding it. What if he reacts badly to our prying?”

There was a pause in the conversation as Shad mulled this over. Rusl quietly tended to his cut, the rustling of the bandages the only sound in the empty bar.

“You know… if this boy really is a mage, do you think he could help us?” Rusl asked at last. “I haven’t met him, but he helped Telma, and magic could seriously aid our cause. Everyone has seen the barrier that went up around Hyrule Castle last night, barring us from Princess Zelda. Maybe he can find a spell to get through it.”

“I have to admit, I considered inviting him after the Shadow Beast incident,” Telma admitted. “He seems like a nice boy, and he may just be hiding whatever magic he has because he doesn’t know us yet.”

Shad shrugged. “I know Auru was also wanting to recruit him, but Ashei is not thrilled at the prospect.”

A feminine voice drew everyone’s attention. “What do I not like?”

The trio turned toward the door, which had just swung open to reveal Ashei, standing in full training gear, a pack of various tools swung over her shoulder.

Rusl was the first to speak up in response to her question. “We were discussing the boy who arrived recently. Danny. Why don’t you want him to join the Resistance?”

Ashei strode over to the counter and dropped her pack onto it with a loud thump. “He’s a foreigner,” she said bluntly, “and he’s hiding something. If he can’t trust us, we can’t trust him.”

“But he’s had no reason to trust us,” Rusl replied. “Shouldn’t we confront him and give him the chance to tell the truth?” Ashei merely scowled. Rusl sighed. “Listen, Ashei, I haven’t met him yet, so my opinion could still change. But imagine how helpful it would be if we had someone who understood magic on our side. We already know our enemies are sorcerers of some sort, but despite all of our knowledge and combat experience we can do almost nothing against magic. He might even be able to use his abilities to help us rescue Princess Zelda!”

Ashei regarded the three of them, scrutinizing each of their faces in turn. “And you all agree with this?”

“I believe we should give him a chance,” Telma said. “He saved my life. That counts for something.”

“Think of what he could teach us, Ashei,” Shad added eagerly. “I think it’s worth a try!”

She crossed her arms. “Hmm. Fine. I will accept allowing him to join the Resistance—if you allow me to test him first.” She turned away from the conversation toward the stairs. “Don’t tell him anything until I can talk to him.”

And with that, she was gone.

oOoOo

Danny landed at the entrance to the light spirit’s spring where he remembered Auru going and, after making sure that no one was around, he transformed back into a human. By this point it was daytime. He had not slept at all last night. It almost felt like he was on a wild goose chase, running all around this kingdom and meeting so many people to try and get the answer to just one single question, cursing him to insomnia until he found the answers. It was tiring, and he really hoped this light spirit would finally give him a straight answer.

The spring was within a cave of stone, and Danny entered it quietly. A natural cliffside overlooked a small pond. At first glance, it seemed to be completely empty, a peaceful silence cloaking the area.

“Hello? Light spirit? You here?” he called out, walking forward to the edge of the cliff. He looked down into the still water, seeing nothing but the bottom of the pond. He looked back up, checking every corner of the area, but he received no response.

“So, um, some Sages sent me here? They said you could help me get to the princess?” he tried again. Still no answer. He huffed in frustration, crossing his arms. “Look, if you don’t want to help me, whatever, but at least let me know I’m not crazy for yelling at a cave full of water!”

He waited a beat more before letting out a strangled growl of annoyance, smacking his head with the palm of his hand. “Ugh, of course no one’s here! If there really was a ‘spirit’ I’d sense it anyway, right? Stupid…” He took a step back, sparing a final glare for the pond, and then transformed into a ghost to fly out.

He was not expecting the world to suddenly explode in light, forcing him to cry out and cover his eyes at the onslaught of brightness.

“Ghostly interloper of death and darkness… why have you entered my domain…?”

Danny, still struggling to blink the spots out of his vision, could only bite back, “I don’t even know who you are! I didn’t do anything to you. You just blinded me!”

“You are not of this world, much like the beings of Twilight, and that is crime enough. You reek of perverted magic, a being that has unnaturally extended its existence beyond the natural limits. You disgrace the goddesses’ gifts and I will not allow it. Leave Hyrule at once or I will be forced to eliminate your blight.”

He finally gained enough of his vision back so that he could blearily stare at his aggressor. Despite all of the insane things he’d found in this world, it seemed like there were _still_ weird creatures that could surprise him. It was an enormous snake-like sea monster, rising out of the pond and glowing brighter than his ghost form could ever hope to even on the best of days. In fact, the entire room seemed alight with its power, the ethereal patterns shining on its body also evident on the stalactites and stalagmites in the cave. Furthermore, it had an orb that burned his eyes like the sun clenched in its mouth, impossibly remaining still as it spoke, its echoing voice booming in the enclosed cave.

“Y-You’re the light spirit,” he realized. He laughed nervously as the beast’s lower tail flicked from side to side in animalistic irritation, holding out his hands placatingly. “H-Hey, let’s not get off on the wrong foot. I’m actually _trying_ to leave Hyrule. I just need to reach Princess Zelda!”

These words proved to be the wrong thing to say as the spirit roared. “You will not touch the princess, aberrant monster! Just like the Shadow Beasts who came before you, you merely seek to steal her power and the light of my peers!”

This conversation was going very, _very_ badly. “No! I’m not here to—”

The spirit surged forward.

It coiled like a snake and bore its fangs, the orb within them floating abnormally within its open mouth when it struck. Danny flew above the first blow instinctively but was surprised as a second one came immediately after, sinking its sharp teeth into his arm. He bit back a scream. He phased out of the grip of the teeth, clutching the wound that was bleeding ectoplasm.

God, he really hoped that thing wasn’t venomous. He was once poisoned by a ghost snake and was bedridden for days. It also made his arm glow, which had been way too hard to hide from his parents…

“I promise I just want help!” he growled in frustration. The spirit ignored him, aiming an ineffective swipe of its tail at his intangible figure. Danny scowled. “Fine, if that’s how you want to play, then let’s play!”

He charged and fired an ecto-blast. It hit the spirit dead-on in the mouth, eliciting an unearthly shriek that rivaled his Ghostly Wail in volume alone. He grimaced at the loud noise, feeling slightly bad for hurting this creature that was apparently really special to the people around here (Auru had mentioned people _praying_ to it!)—but it attacked him first, and he wasn’t going down without a fight.

He raised two hands and fired a barrage of ecto-blasts, refusing to let up on his assault. Being too large of a target to dodge them all, the spirit dove under the water. The glow of the pond made it impossible for Danny to see below. “I really don’t want to fight you,” Danny said, still holding an ecto-blast in his hand in preparation. “Just tell me how I can get through that barrier around the castle and I’ll leave.”

The spirit burst back out, massive teeth chomping in his location once again. He turned intangible, flying through its neck and turning around to deliver a punch to the back of its head, sending the spirit howling back into the water. Once again it hid in the depths, before suddenly launching its tail out of the water, this time managing to hit him in the back where he was thrown into the cave wall, loose rocks falling down from the ceiling.

He groaned, righting himself in midair before he fell into the pond, and floated away, back to the wall to prevent another sneak attack. He needed to stop the spirit from diving into the water if he wanted it to stop attacking him suddenly. But how…

Danny smacked his head. Oh, duh. He had ice powers!

His eyes turned an icy blue, the previously warm temperature in the cave dropping rapidly toward zero. He focused that chill into a concentrated point in his palm and then floating down to the water, touching its surface. A thick layer of ice instantly snaked across the surface, slowly creeping in winding patterns and sealing up the water. Before long, the surface was thoroughly covered, sealing his enemy below.

“Stop at once!” He could see the spirit thrashing beneath the ice. “Free me!”

“And let you try to eat me again? No thanks.” He tried to sound confident and threatening, but really, he just felt… _guilty_. This was not how he’d imagined this meeting, not at all. “Like I said, just tell me what I need to know, and I’ll let you go.”

The spirit screeched in outrage, its voice just as clear under the water as above. “Never! I will destroy you, vile thing!”

He sighed. Staying here any longer was no use; the spirit would not tell him anything now. He tried to push back the flood of disappointment, not daring to try and think of what his next move would be. If the light spirit could not help him get through the barrier, who could?

Abruptly, a soft sound reached his sensitive ears, and he quickly looked to the entrance of the cave. Footsteps. Someone was approaching.

“…you hear…? It sounded… spirit’s spring…” Voices came from just outside, but Danny did not want to see who they belonged to.

With one last forlorn glance at the now icy spring, Danny said, “This should melt in an hour. I’m… sorry.”

Two figures appeared at the entrance to the cave. A young man dressed completely in green surveyed the scene: the cave alight with the spirit’s power, the frozen spring, the crater in the wall he’d been thrown into—before finally locking eyes with Danny himself, eyes narrowing in accusation.

And of course, because that was just Danny’s luck, right next to the man was the imp he’d met on his arrival.

Nope. He was not dealing with her again.

Without another word, he turned invisible and phased out through the roof of the cave.

oOoOo

“Do you really think this Auru guy is gonna help us?” Midna asked doubtfully.

“He’s researching the desert, Midna,” Link murmured back, sending a wary glance around to ensure that no one was watching. They were walking along the shores of Lake Hylia and no one was around, but he always had to check. He’d been caught speaking to his shadow before and that was not an experience he wanted to repeat.

“And that means, what, he’ll magically know how to get there? This just sounds like a waste of time,” she complained.

Link opened his mouth to reply, but a strange sound filled the air, making him stop in his tracks. “Did you hear that?”

“Was that a scream?” Midna popped out of his shadow (which she really needed to stop doing; just because she could stand in the sunlight now didn’t mean she wouldn’t freak people out with her otherworldly appearance). “It sounded like it was coming from the spirit’s spring.”

Silently agreeing, Link headed for the spring, which was not far at all. He hesitated at the entrance, thinking back to the last time he was here, when Zant had nearly killed Midna with the spirit’s power and almost permanently trapped him as a wolf. Zant was the reason that Zelda had to sacrifice herself for Midna, and the reason Hyrule Castle was now surrounded by an impenetrable barrier. It was a bit terrifying to think that if Zant was still in there (even though the chances were super low) all of that could happen again.

Link gathered his courage, reminding himself of the Master Sword now strapped to his back. This time, he had the advantage.

He walked into the cave and shuddered, caught off guard by the frigid temperature within. He took note that the cave was lit up like when he’d last spoken to the spirit, but said spirit was nowhere to be found. Instead it looked like the spring was covered with... ice?

Even more surprising, however, was the boy floating above the frozen surface, a fearful look in his eyes as he stared back at Link.

And Link _knew_ him. He was the very same boy that he’d met in Castle Town as a wolf. Except… since when could he _fly_?

“Hey!” Midna shouted at him—but he was already gone. Link blinked in shock. One second the boy had been there, and the next, he’d vanished. Link was almost inclined to think he’d imagined the whole thing, but he was reminded with a tinge of annoyance that the boy had done this exact same thing to them at the end of their last encounter.

“Hero chosen by the goddesses… save me…”

Link was stirred from his thoughts by the sound of the light spirit Lanayru’s voice. He rushed to the edge of the pond, running a hand over its surface and shivering. Yes, that was certainly ice. But how?

“What happened?” Midna said, voicing the exact question that was in his head.

“I was attacked… by a monster that coveted information about the princess...”

“Zelda? Something wanted to hurt her?” Midna grit her teeth, clenching her fists in anger. Link knew that she was extremely defensive of the princess of Hyrule, especially after Zelda had selflessly given Midna her power.

But something didn’t quite add up to Link.

“Are you talking about the boy that was in here? He attacked you?” he asked, confused. The boy had been… odd, when they’d met him, but hardly violent. In fact, he’d been trying to _save_ an injured girl. It seemed like a huge shift in character to go from rescuing innocents to attacking ancient spirits.

“It is no mere boy,” Lanayru snarled. Link was surprised by its ferocity; the spirits had been nothing but calm and detached when he’d spoken to them before. “It is a creature of the undead, resurrected through dark magic. A ghost, for all that it likes to masquerade as a human.”

“I _knew_ something was weird about that kid!” Midna growled. Link, however, wasn’t quite convinced. It didn’t make sense. Whether he really was a ghost or not (and he had to admit, that explained some things, such as the weird aura he sensed as a wolf around the boy), he had never shown an inclination towards violence, let alone the kind of power that could confine what was sometimes considered a _deity_.

“Link, what are you waiting for? Get the light spirit out of there!” Midna demanded.

Link realized she was right, and he hacked at the ice with his sword. Unfortunately, it was far too thick for him to break that easily, so he withdrew a bomb from his pouch and lit it. “Everyone stay back.”

Shortly thereafter, the bomb exploded and Lanayru burst free with a shower of ice falling off its snake-like form. “You have my gratitude, Hero,” said the spirit. “Your mission is of great importance to Hyrule. However… I have one final request for you and the Twilight Princess…”

“More work?” Midna sighed. “Great. What is it?”

“That ghost… could be a threat to the kingdom.” Link felt a chill go down his spine that had nothing to do with the temperature. “It can take on a human guise and has shown a penchant for violence. If you happen come upon it, or you encounter it again on your journeys, I ask you but one thing…

“For the sake of our kingdom… destroy it. Permanently.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oooof. Sorry this took so long. Got a new job and training's killing me. But I'm gonna be a 2nd grade teacher so that's hype! Updates will probably be monthly instead of weekly until I adjust, sorry. :(
> 
> I wanted to delay this for another week because every time I read the first couple scenes I get major anxiety because I'm so unhappy with it but I also wanna get this out and just be DONE with it so here you go lol. There're actually a couple timeline/consistency issues I've made but I'm hoping no one will notice. I might have to come back and edit this some time in the future. Hope you like it anyway, I was looking forward to that light spirit scene since the beginning of this fic. :P Sorry if the plot's going a bit slow, I just keep wanting to write cool character moments! Thanks for your comments so far, please keep letting me know what you think!
> 
> I planned to post this two days ago to promote ANOTHER Zelda marathon since I was playing Link's Awakening for them, but my schedule said lolno. Still, check out ZUthon at ZeldaUniverseTV on Twitch, going until August 3rd! I'm not staff for them like ZD, but it's for a good cause!


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Danny finds a new lead, and Ashei challenges him to a sparring match.

The first thing he did, of course, was go to Castle Town to test the Sages’ claims about the barrier.

Unfortunately, they were right. Danny’s fully intangible hand refused to pass through it. His fully intangible _body_ refused to pass through it. It felt like a wall just as solid as any other. He glared at the barrier for a while, half-considering slamming into it just in case somehow speed was the reason it wasn’t working. Yes, he knew it was stupid. But he was desperate. He’d tried everything else. The only thing he _hadn’t_ tried was his Ghostly Wail, and that was only because if it _did_ destroy the barrier, there was a good chance it would also destroy the entire castle.

In the end, he managed to talk himself out of it. He’d already gotten enough concussions from trying to fly through ghost-proof things in the past and honestly he didn’t want another one, thank you very much.

He flew back to Telma’s Bar, landing and transforming back into a human. He dragged his feet as he approached the door. Nothing had gone right in that meeting with the Light Spirit. And now what was he supposed to do? The castle was off-limits, and his only remaining lead had outright _attacked_ him.

He threw open the door (belatedly realizing that he probably should have knocked; he wasn’t even sure if the bar was open)—and was met with a much livelier place than he was used to. Instead of the typically empty lobby, the place was bustling with customers. Several people were seated at various tables around the building. Most of them were human, but there were also a couple of the rock people sitting at a nearby table.

Danny spent a moment taking in the scene, especially the rock people. (He _still_ wasn’t totally comfortable with the fact that this world had _talking rocks_ and it was _normal_.) But eventually he took note of the table at the back of the room with four figures. He recognized three of them—Shad, Ashei, and even Telma herself—but the last was an unfamiliar man wearing an odd helmet that obscured his eyes. Funnily enough, his headgear was not what caught Danny’s attention… but rather the man’s ears.

Everyone in this world had pointed ears, which was something that he’d gotten used to rather quickly. He didn’t mind if they looked like elves from Dungeons and Dragons. (Not that he’d played that or anything. Sure, he was a loser, but he wasn’t _that_ much of a nerd. Even if Tucker’s D&D books looked cool…)

However, for the first time, this man had perfectly rounded ears, as normal as Danny’s own.

“Oh, Danny! Good to see you!” Telma greeted as she walked away from a table carrying a platter of dirty glasses. “Auru told me you were coming, but I almost didn’t believe him. He was shocked that I’d somehow met the young man he rescued while I was all the way in Kakariko.”

Something about the way she said that made him tear his gaze away from the new man, regarding her with a puzzled expression. And then he realized. He’d told Auru and the others that he had been in Castle Town the whole time.

Oh _no_.

Danny recoiled, his eyes widening in fear. What did she know? What did she _think_ she knew? She had already seen him fight off a Shadow Beast; who knew what kind of conclusions she’d come to? Crap crap crap crap—

“You don’t have to leave, honey,” Telma said calmly. He realized he’d subconsciously started taking steps back toward the exit. She held up her hands in a gesture of peace. “We’re not going to do anything, I promise. Danny, you saved my life in Kakariko, and however you managed to get here, I’m extremely grateful. I’m not going to kick you out just because you have some secrets. Besides,” she added wryly, “you’re hardly our only acquaintance who can get from one place to another quickly.”

“Goodness, yes,” Shad sighed in exasperation. He was seated at a table at the far end of the room with Ashei and the mystery man. “Telma just introduced us to a lad named Link—who claimed to have gone from Lake Hylia to the Faron Woods back to Castle Town all within one day! And he refuses to tell us how. What I would give for that kind of convenience!”

“Sounds nice,” Danny said, not that he had any idea where those woods were. He was still feeling wary, but Shad and Telma had such friendly, open expressions that it was becoming hard to distrust them. They showed zero signs of hostility, and even the mild suspicion from before seemed to have vanished, becoming something more akin to excitement. He wondered what, exactly, had brought on that.

Sensing no danger, Danny cautiously approached the table where they were seated, ignoring glances from the bar patrons and the uncomfortably scrutinizing look Ashei was sending his way. He nodded towards the man in goggles who had ears that were far too similar to his own. “I don’t think we’ve met.”

“I’m Rusl,” the man said, “a newer member of Telma’s group here. You must be Danny! I’ve heard a lot about you.”

“Yep, that’s me,” Danny said, shooting a glare toward Shad and Telma, who looked far too innocent. He hated that. Why were they talking about him? What had they been saying? He sighed and turned his attention back to Rusl, studying him intently. It was far to strange to him to see someone who looked so _normal_ here.

“Is there something on my face?” Rusl asked, frowning.

Danny suddenly realized he had been staring at the man for far too long. “Um, no. Nothing’s wrong. I just couldn’t help but notice your…” He gestured vaguely at the man’s ears.

Rusl briefly looked confused before his eyes lit up in realization. “Oh, my ears?” He touched their rounded edges lightly. “Yes, I’m from Ordon. Few of us in that village are pure-blooded Hylians like the people here in Castle Town, and it shows.” He smiled a bit ruefully. “I know you’re from out of the kingdom, but I’m still from Hyrule, even if I don’t have their characteristic pointed ears. Sorry to disappoint.”

“Oh.” Danny tried very hard not to let his disappointment show on his face. It had been kind of a dumb hope anyway, that maybe there was another person trapped with him in this stupid medieval world. He sunk into his chair dejectedly. He contemplated asking where Auru was, but then he remembered that the man had mentioned he would be going to Lake Hylia to do more research today.

Remembering his own experiences at Lake Hylia earlier that day, Danny dropped his head onto his hands with a noisy sigh.

“Rough day?” Telma guessed.

“You could say that,” he grumbled.

“Have you made any more progress in your research?” Shad inquired. “I must admit, I’m quite curious. I even did a bit of reading myself, but I have yet to find anything related to your ‘mortal goddess’.”

Danny scowled. That was _exactly_ what he was trying to forget about. “Nothing about this stupid goddess, nothing about this stupid Stalfos, nothing about any stupid mirror or song or anything!”

“Hey, Auru mentioned a mirror before he left, yeah?” Ashei interjected.

Having had far too many false beacons of hope in the past couple of days, Danny was not encouraged by this information. “Oh, did he,” he said flatly, laying down at the table with his head on his elbows.

“Ah, right you are, Ashei!” exclaimed Shad. “A cursed mirror that could… what did he say?”

“I believe he mentioned it created a portal to the underworld,” Rusl said. “He said they used to send prisoners there. It was a harrowing story.”

Danny froze.

 _No. Way_.

“The… the underworld?” he repeated. He sat back up and focused on the trio at the table with wide eyes, at full attention. “Like… the realm of the dead?”

“I believe so,” Shad said, apparently missing his suddenly renewed interest. “Auru claimed they only did that to prisoners sentenced to execution. This mirror would send them directly to the afterlife. Isn’t it fascinating to consider how much of that could be true? Imagine, a mirror that could actually send people to another world. A world of those who have died, nonetheless!”

“Only you would think that is anything but terrifying, my friend!” Rusl laughed, and Shad began to reply, but Danny was no longer listening.

A mirror that worked as a portal to the realm of the dead. That couldn’t possibly be a coincidence.

“Where do I find it?” Danny asked quickly, cutting off Shad who had been spouting off some sort of theories about the Hyrulian afterlife. The four others in the room stared at him in surprise.

“What?”

“The mirror.” He turned and slid off the chair, getting to his feet. “Where is it?”

“Danny, you’re not planning on investigating it _now_ , are you?” Telma said, shocked. “You’ve only just returned, and no matter how quickly you can travel, the prison that houses the mirror sounds extremely dangerous. I can’t imagine a boy, even one as capable as yourself, going out this late at night to a place said to be haunted with the souls of departed criminals!”

 _And_ the place was haunted? Instead of being deterred, Danny only felt more excited. Even if this mirror was useless, haunted meant _ghosts_ , and ghosts meant someone who might know how to get into the Ghost Zone! And the Ghost Zone meant…

A chance at getting home. A chance at seeing his friends again. A chance at finally leaving this awful world and returning to protect his town.

“I’ll be fine,” he insisted.

Telma shook her head, baffled. “But… why? Why do you even need to go so soon?”

He crossed his arms. “That doesn’t matter. You can’t stop me from going.”

“No, I can’t, and I’m not,” Telma said, shaking her head. “But what kind of friend would I be if I let you recklessly charge somewhere in the middle of the night? Do you even have a plan on how to get there?”

“You _know_ I can defend myself,” he ground out, curling his hands into fists, “and I’m not—"

“We’re not saying you can’t,” Shad piped up. “We’re just trying to understand.”

“That’s none of your— “

“Yes,” Telma agreed, “why don’t you—"

_“Just tell me where it is!”_

There was silence as everyone stared at him, and he realized just how loud his voice had gotten. He pushed aside the guilt. Just like he pushed aside every other unhelpful emotion. Anger was easy. He couldn’t afford to feel guilt (or fear or depression or loneliness or _hopelessness)—_

He clenched his fist and squeezed his eyes shut, struggling to keep his powers under control. It took all his will power to keep his eyes from glowing. He felt the temperature around him dropping sharply and he took in a deep breath to try and reign in the ice that threatened to seep out.

Ashei suddenly got to her feet, the loud scraping of her chair against the floor making him open his eyes. She gazed down at him, serious expression still firmly in place. “Get up,” she ordered.

He was caught off guard, but he quickly recovered and turned his glare toward her. “What?”

“I said get up,” she repeated, her clipped tone allowing no room for argument. “You’re going to spar with me. Now.”

He was so confused that for a moment, he blinked, completely lost. But then her words sunk in. “No, I’m not!” he spat out. “In case you forgot, I said I’m going to get that mirror!”

A smirk formed on her face. “Are you sure you’re not just too much of a coward to fight me?”

“I’m—that’s not… no!” he sputtered. Her refusal to be riled up by his anger was frustrating and made him feel disoriented.

“If you’re not, then you will meet me in the courtyard.”

Without another word, she spun on her heel and marched up the stairs out of sight.

His fury dwindled at her retreat, fading fully into confusion as he tried to process _what the heck had just happened_.

“A word of advice: don’t keep her waiting,” Shad said with a sympathetic pat on his shoulder. “You’ll regret it if you do.”

“But… why is she doing this?” Danny asked, bewildered.

Shad shrugged. “You will have to find out. I’ve known Ashei for years and even I don’t fully understand how she works sometimes.”

“Very true!” Telma agreed, laughing heartily. “Don’t worry about Ashei, honey. She’s got a rough exterior but a truly noble heart. I’m sure whatever she’s planning won’t hurt.” She paused, and then muttered under her breath, “At least not permanently…”

“I never said I was actually going to fight her,” he grumbled.

Shad, Telma, and Rusl watched him expectantly.

With a sigh, he stood up and headed out the door.

He made his way to the courtyard that was still splattered with some small puddles from last night’s rainfall. He shifted impatiently from foot to foot, not particularly thrilled with being forced to wait for in the open.

Eventually the door to the bar opened and Ashei emerged. Danny opened his mouth to demand answers, but then his eyes fell on the items she held in her hand.

She was carrying two long objects. At first he thought they were sticks… but when he noticed the unmistakable point at the end and the cross-like hilt, his heart sunk.

Oh, great. Somehow when she mentioned sparring, he hadn’t realized that meant _more swordplay_.

Without warning, Ashei tossed one in his direction. He yelped and fumbled with the object, struggling to get a good grip, but it clattered to the ground. She merely offered a disapproving glare, making him respond with a nervous laugh. “Um, oops?”

“Pick it up. I want to see your skills,” Ashei instructed, brandishing the other wooden sword in her hand.

“B-But… I don’t know how to use a sword,” he replied meekly. Despite his words, he bent down and picked up the sword, holding it up to examine it. The sides were completely blunt and rounded, unlike a real weapon, but it was still surprisingly heavy, weighing almost as much as the one the Stalfos had given him.

She tilted her head, the frown on her face becoming more thoughtful. “You have combat experience, yeah?”

He blinked. “Um, I guess so?” At first he was confused about how she could have possibly known that—but then he remembered that Telma had almost certainly told her the story about his battle with the creature in Kakariko. He inwardly cringed. He _knew_ that fight would come back to haunt him.

“Then you will learn,” she said dismissively, raising her weapon once again.

“Woah, hey, no,” he said, trying to take a step back as she began to advance. “Look, I’ve already tried to learn. I’m very very bad at it. This is a really bad—”

She lunged.

Only his well-honed instincts from ghost fighting enabled him to dive to the side, spinning sideways so that the weapon sailed right in front of him. He backpedaled again, now scowling at her. “Hey!” he shouted, “I just said I don’t want to fight!”

“I do.” She followed up with three short slashes in succession. She was fast—normal human fast, of course, but still fast, and it was all he could do to try and continue sidestepping the strikes. Ashei refused to give him a moment of rest; her attacks were relentless and unceasing, following him no matter where in the courtyard he tried to hide.

As he danced away from her attacks, his anger from before flared again, bubbling dangerously. He was so _done_ with fighting! First it was the beasts in the castle, then the skeletal spirit, and then the creature attacking Telma, and _then_ the light spirit—it felt like this world just kept throwing fight after fight after fight at him.

He tightened his grip on the hilt, knuckles becoming white as he clenched it with both hands.

The next time Ashei stepped in for an attack, he stepped inward instead, getting in her personal space. She was obviously caught off guard and he tried to take advantage, slamming his fists and the hilt of his sword into her gut. She stumbled backwards, trying to regain her balance before looking up at him with wide eyes.

“That’s not how you use a sword,” she said flatly.

“I _told_ you I don’t know how to use it!” he growled.

She smirked, which only made Danny more infuriated. “Try and hit me again. Preferably with the weapon this time.”

He gritted his teeth and stepped in toward her. If she was going to insist on this fight, then it would be on his own terms.

Reminding himself to stay limited to human strength, he swung the practice sword in a wide arc from above, wielding it more like a bat than a blade. But Ashei was easily able to dodge, even as he advanced on her.

Their battle resumed in a similar fashion as before, except now Ashei was on the defensive. She was a lot more effective than he had been, not only dodging the attacks but occasionally throwing parries that Danny had to avoid. With every strike he missed, Danny became more and more hasty, his attacks even less coordinated than before as he threw out any knowledge of combat he might have retained in hopes of landing a single hit.

“Are you even trying?” Ashei taunted, and he responded with a glower and another swing that she blocked with her own sword. “If you’re this slow, how do you think you’ll ever get back to your home?”

He snapped.

With a wordless cry of anger, he swung the practice sword down, completely forgetting all his promises to pretend to be a normal human. Ashei stepped back but his strike continued, slashing down towards the paved stone of the courtyard. A loud crack rang out throughout the area and the sword snapped in two.

He stared at the hilt in his hand, almost uncomprehendingly as the last of his rage began draining away. His panting was the only sound remaining in the silence of the alley, the distant buzz of Castle Town’s streets fading far into the background.

Ashei’s face was unreadable.

Danny finally regained his senses and straightened up, dropping the sword to the ground. He took a step back when he realized what exactly he’d done, gaze flickering up to try and figure out exactly what Ashei was thinking.

“Well,” she said at length, “I’ve never seen anyone able to break the sword completely in half. Impressive strength.”

He flushed, stammering out, “I-I didn’t mean to…”

“You feel better now, yeah?” She stepped in and reached down to pick up the pieces, frowning at them before tucking both halves under her arm. “My father always made me spar when I was upset. It helped me. I had a feeling it would help you too.” The corners of her mouth twisted in repressed amusement. “Though the glowing eyes were unexpected.”

Danny gasped and raised a hand to his face as though he would be able to see the green lighting up his hand—but no, his eyes were definitely normal now. He had been so stupid. He’d been so focused on trying to hit her that he hadn’t even considered that his powers might react in response to his emotions. “Um… y-you’re not going to tell anyone about that, right?”

“That depends.” She leveled a firm glare in his direction that forced him to use all his willpower not to physically shrink away. “Are you going to harm anyone here?”

“What?” He gaped, genuinely surprised by her question. “No! Of course not!”

She hummed thoughtfully. “Earlier, when I was sitting by you, frost was forming upon the chair you sat at.”

His eyes widened. Oh, Ancients, he had _really_ messed up this time. Glowing eyes could be a trick of the light, and the Shadow Beast battle could just have been luck or experience—but how could he explain _ice_? He’d been so focused on trying to control his anger that he hadn’t thought of any physical evidence that someone could see. Now everyone had to know that he was some kind of inhuman _thing_ with powers and they would kick him out and—

“The others could not see it,” Ashei cut in, interrupting his increasingly panicked thoughts. “I only noticed because I was sitting next to you. They don’t know.”

He took in a steadying breath, trying to calm himself. Right… of course. The others really wouldn’t have acted so friendly to him afterward if they had seen. And Ashei wouldn’t have asked to spar with him if she was going to kick him out. “Then, um… what are you going to do about it?”

“I want an explanation. Can you explain why your eyes were glowing? Or how you created ice out of thin air? Or how you had enough strength to break a sword in half?”

His heart sunk. “I… I can’t. You wouldn’t believe me even if I told you.”

She sighed. “I thought you would say that.” She approached him, and he stiffened, unsure of what she was planning. She reached out and placed a hand on his shoulder, surprisingly gentle. “The others in there… they think you’re a mage.” The flat tone with which she said it made it exceedingly clear what she thought of _that_ suggestion, but she continued nonetheless. “They trust you.”

He blinked and looked up at her. That wasn’t what he had expected.

“They think that you could help us. Help our country. If you agree, I will allow you to keep your secrets.” Her face sharpened, features twisting into another glare. “But if you ever show any signs that you could be a danger to anyone I care about, then I _will_ take you down.”

Before Danny could even reply, she’d turned around and started walking back towards the door of the bar. “And Danny?” she called over her shoulder.

“…Yeah?”

“If you’re going to be sticking around, we’ll be working on your swordplay some more.” She threw him a smirk, and then a moment later she shut the door to the bar behind her, leaving him alone in the alleyway.

He stared at his feet, taking a deep breath as he thought over everything that had just happened.

…Maybe he _would_ wait until tomorrow to go find that mirror.

oOoOo

Zant watched impassively as the young Goron writhed on the ground, the last of his life slowing seeping out of his body. It had been fairly easy to capture the descendant of the Sage of Fire, and now it was time to see if his work in searching down this descendant would pay off.

He watched in fascination as a swirling portal appeared right above the still-twitching body. Unlike his previous attempt at opening a portal to the Sacred Realm, he was far more prepared for any creatures that may enter; the king was surrounded by dozens of Shadow Beasts, and the room itself had been covered in protective spells that would hopefully prevent anything from escaping.

Zant was mildly disappointed that after several moments, the portal remained still and silent. He stared at it intensely, taking note of its glowing green depths (which seemed unusual, as he had never heard of such a color being associated with a realm linked to the goddesses), but it did not change.

He turned to the beasts surrounding him. “Enter the portal and tell me what you find,” he barked at the two nearest creatures. Without hesitation, the two Shadow Beasts stepped forward and disappeared into the rift.

The portal closed behind them, but Zant was unconcerned. He’d already captured the descendant of another sage as well, so he could reopen the portal at any time. But for now, he would wait, and allow his scouts to observe the realm and bring back information on what they found. In the meantime… he not only had the creature from the previous to hunt down, but he also had a Hero that he needed to stop.

It was time to pay the Hero a visit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> no hate to the D&D nerds, i DM two campaigns lol
> 
> Anyway, this chapter is basically the scene that created this fic. In game, Auru says, and I quote, "The criminals who were sentenced to death were sent directly to the underworld by a cursed mirror that was kept in the prison." The "underworld" was just too good of a connection to pass up.
> 
> Thank you all for sticking with me! I know updates have slowed down a ton, but I'm still keeping a minimum of one update per month. I refuse to drop below that hah. As always, feel free to bug me if I'm not around -- comments give me SO MUCH more motivation to write! Feedback and constructive criticism is appreciated as well. :D And you've all been so unbelievably kind!!!
> 
> EDIT: Also, forgot to say this... but special thanks to [Ozone](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26153824/chapters/63633916) and [Master Hazama](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26225452/chapters/63828814) for betaing this! They were so helpful. ^^ They are also excellent authors, so check out their stories too!


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finally, Link and Midna meet the ghost boy once again.

One thing Danny was really coming to dislike about this world: everything was _so far apart_. With the amount of times he'd had to fly between Castle Town and Lake Hylia, he was pretty sure he could draw a map of the route from _memory_. And that was saying something, since there was literally nothing to look at along the way except a lot of bushes, grass, and rocks.

This alternate universe was so bad it even found a way to make _flying_ boring.

Still, he was undeterred by the long repetitious flights as he flew over Lake Hylia for the third time in as many days. All he had to do was think of his home and his family and it made everything much easier. He could only pray that this mirror was really what he needed.

But how could it not be? Even if, by some cosmic prank, it wasn't the same mirror the Stalfos had mentioned, it went to a world of dead people. There was no possible way that could be anything but the Ghost Zone.

_Oh Ancients, please don't let it be anything but the Ghost Zone—_

Sometime around noon, he finally spotted Arbiter's Grounds in the distance, examining the building from above. According to Shad, this place had once been a prison for the worst of Hyrule's criminals. He could believe it; the tower cast an imposing figure like an old Roman gladiator arena and had pillars taller than the highest story of Vlad's ugly Wisconsin castle. This combined with the ancient look of its dirty, dilapidated stone walls made it quite intimidating. The constant chill of his ghost sense only confirmed the obvious assumption that anyone would make just by _looking_ at it that this was a haunted place with a dark history.

He headed to the roof again, hoping to find the Sages—but this time, no matter how much he called for them, they didn't answer. The large space of the roof was empty, holding only the large statue he had seen last time. There was no mirror in sight.

With a hint of trepidation, he landed in front of the entrance to the tower. He really wasn't looking forward to traipsing through the ghost-filled remnants of a prison, but what choice did he have? If he was really lucky, maybe some of the ghosts inside would be willing to help him.

The first room caught him off guard. It was filled with sand and lit torches lining the walls, but, even more disturbing was the amount of bones strewn around.

Danny floated over the sandy floors and phased through the door to the next room. As he advanced through each room he found much of the same: crumbling walls and floors dusted with sand and grime, the remains of previous prison occupants scattered about. By one collapsed pillar he found a fully intact rotting corpse wrapped in bandages like a mummy. So intact, in fact, that he half-expected it to jump up and attack him with the enormous sword laying on the ground next to it, no matter how ridiculous that notion might seem. He grimaced and quickly moved on.

Throughout the whole experience, he couldn't shake the feeling someone was watching him, following his journey throughout the building.

He eventually entered a large central room with four torches flickering with an eerie blue light that had an undeniably spectral feel. Of course, almost everything in this place had a somewhat ghostly feeling. But he hadn't seen any actual ghosts yet, so…

Danny shuddered as his ghost sense went off again, and he was once more acutely aware of the sensation of invisible eyes watching him. Clenching his fists to try and suppress his involuntary response to the chill, he glared at his surroundings.

"Hey, whoever's following me, news flash, you're terrible at sneaking! I know you're there!" he growled at the empty air, his voice echoing off the large room's high ceiling. "Just come out already!"

" _S'thxlh_ …"

Whatever he had been expecting, it was not the unnatural hissing sound that bounced off the walls in a way that really didn't make sense with its quiet volume. Danny tensed, initially thinking it was just a whisper—but then he realized that it wasn't just noise. It was a _word_. How he knew it was a word was a complete mystery, but he somehow perfectly understood its meaning:

 _Intruder_ …

Danny had just an instant to react when he caught movement out of the corner of his eye. He turned just in time to dodge a scythe slicing the air in front of him. He allowed himself a brief moment to come to terms with the fact that he had narrowly avoided death (or re-death?) before facing his attacker.

In front of him was a ghost, that much was certain. Its body was a monochrome gray, its skin (if it could be called that) stretched like poorly sewn cloth. The proportions were uncomfortably off, its stomach too small, like a doll that wasn't quite stuffed properly, its mouth and eyes covered in eerie stitches. For some reason, its feet, which were nothing more than rounded bulbs, seemed to be stitched to the handle of a lantern that hung below the ghost and shone with the same spectral blue as the torches in the room.

Danny immediately retaliated with a punch of his own, causing the odd ghost to crash into the wall behind him. "Finally decided to show yourself, huh?" he said, preparing an ecto-blast as his enemy shook itself out of its dazed stupor and floated back up. "Now how about you tell me where this mirror is?"

" _Ysh chks… khp x kfss p'sf t…"_

He frowned. The noises it made were otherworldly, almost more akin to radio static than speech. And yet, the more he thought about it, the more he… understood it?

_Get out… this prison is ours…_

"What… what are you saying…?" he said, beginning to feel very weirded out. It wasn't even like everything was being translated in his brain—the words just… made sense. Though it took him a moment, like trying to decipher someone speaking on the other side of a noisy room, the meaning crawled out from the depths of his memory without even being asked. It was to the point where even if he _wanted_ it to return to gibberish he _couldn't_ , just as he couldn't simply unlearn English.

The ghost slashed its scythe in his direction again, but for a ghost it was almost hilariously slow and Danny lazily floated to the side to avoid the attack. The ghost screeched in anger and spouted more of those staticky sounds—and once again Danny knew every single word. Which was insane, because they didn't even _sound_ _like_ _words_. He… really wasn't sure he was comfortable with how instinctive his comprehension seemed to be. It was _unnatural_.

On the other hand, the ghost had shown no indication that it understood _him_ and instead continued using this language that he'd never heard before. Was it possible that it didn't speak English? He'd never met a ghost that spoke in these strange noises… but he'd also never met a ghost quite like this one. Nor had he even met a ghost from another dimension.

That was all fine… but why could _he_ understand it?

" _Lhph s sx t. Ysh chks!" You are not one of us. Leave!_

Danny's dad had made the Ghost Gabber that one time. He'd always thought it was stupid. Ghosts didn't have a language… right? Maybe the ones in this world did?

As uncomfortable as he was with the thought that some not-quite-human part of him knew this speech, it was possibly the only way he would ever be able to communicate with this other ghost. He squeezed his eyes shut and carefully gathered his thoughts to try and figured out how to ask about that mirror to the underworld. It took him a moment, but when he opened his mouth, out came " _Lhfth kshp'sh?_ "

He could feel his vocal chords constrict, sound unable to escape, and his throat contract in unfamiliar ways to release uncomfortable rasping sounds. The consonants were harsh on his tongue, rounded with sharp hisses. He had to fight to stop himself from slamming a hand over his own mouth in surprise. Holy crap, he could _speak_ it…

The ghost snarled, slashing its scythe angrily through the air, but thankfully not at Danny this time. He really should not have been so surprised when his words even received a response. " _Lhph xf sh lhfth ksh, xts_ _hp'xlh_ ," it hissed. _You are asking for the mirror, just like the hunters._

"Hunters?" he repeated in surprise. "Ghost hunters? I mean, uh…" He paused, only half-praying his next words would come out as inhuman static. _"K'shksp x… hp'xlh_?"

In lieu of an answer, the ghost lunged again. Danny was getting pretty tired of his enemy's fruitless attacks, so he shot the ecto-blast he had been charging. With a monstrous screech, the ghost was once again forced back and it paused, staring at its smoking wound. It was impossible to determine what it was thinking when it glanced back with its emotionless doll-like face.

" _Lhsth_."

Danny blinked. Despite everything, a translation for this particular word was not immediately forthcoming. Instead it brought to mind some of the more powerful ghosts he'd met, like Clockwork, or Pariah Dark, or… a future that would never exist. Trying to push away _those_ painful thoughts, he opened his mouth to try and ask about it, but the ghost continued.

" _Lhph s tsksh sh ys ths. Lhph s sts qtf sh sshp ths_ ," the ghost murmured. "K _h s xf sh lhph ths, tkshs chks kss p'sf ths, lhsth_ …" _You have power. You can stop them._ _I ask of you, please protect this place, lhsth…_

Oh, _great_. He felt a tug in his core, the part of him that had decided to protect Amity Park, that desired to help others. It didn't help that he already had wanted to scope out these so-called ghost hunters before this ghost even asked him to.

Maybe he should ask for an exchange? " _Ksst lhph s… chxs lhsh kh ths… kshp'sh lhfth, kh s… ksfx…_ " _If you tell me where the mirror is, then I'll try._ It was way harder to speak than to understand; his mouth felt awkward trying to imitate the sounds. He _knew_ something was wrong with the way he was saying things, but he had no idea what it was.

The ghost seemed distressed at this, bobbing up and down in the air. It was such a significant difference from the aggressive stance it had earlier Danny would have doubted it was even the same ghost. " _Sx, kxch chks lhfth ths! Kspsp p's fsp's ssh ths sx tsf,_ " the ghost said. _No, avoid the mirror! Those who approach it never return._

" _P's kxk_ _…_ _sshp ssch sh_ _… Tpsk k'sk_?" he asked. _Is that because they go into the Ghost Zone?_

The ghost just stared at him blankly in return.

He frowned. Had this ghost never heard of the Ghost Zone? Maybe that had something to do with the fact that it didn't seem to have any powers other than standard flight. Maybe that even explained why it only spoke this eerie ghost language. "Okay, never mind _. Kh s s's sh lhfth ths. Thsx sh._ " _I need the mirror. It's important._

The ghost shifted in the air, the lantern at its feet swinging loosely with the movement. " _Lhfth s shphks ksk t lhss, chsh thlhxshf sfth shh lhss. Hp'xlh s xktsh sh shf xxf ssh ths. Lhph thshk ysht ssh ths ksst lhph tsxts sh sshp ths._ " _The mirror was on the roof, but it has been a long time since it was seen. The hunters know how to get it. You may find it if you follow them._

Danny nodded, still trying to process what the ghost had just said. Just as he was about to ask another question, the ghost added, " _Lhph s ktxksh klhs. Sshp s tsksh sh htst x tflh_." _You should hurry. They have a wolf's speed._

A wolf?

….Oh _no_.

oOoOo

"Look, I don't know why you're so opposed to getting rid of that ghost anyway. You tear out Poe souls all the time!"

Link shot Midna a look. "That's different, and you know it."

"It's really not," she drawled, floating lazily in the air next to him. "The Poes are dead, that ghost is dead, the Poes are evil, the ghost is evil—where's the difference? What, just 'cause this guy looks like he's some twelve-year-old makes you go all soft? Not all monsters are ugly, you know."

They were currently trudging back through Arbiter's Grounds after an encounter with Zant. He had brought an entire skeletal monster to life; Link shuddered at the amount of power the usurper seemed to possess.

And worse still, when they arrived on the roof, they discovered that the Mirror of Twilight they sought had already been fractured by Zant. They'd been too late on every front, and now their only hope was possibly collecting the mirror's scattered fragments and praying it could be restored.

Midna had been so distraught that she had even forgone her usual portal back to the entrance, instead opting to walk back. Link had thought that maybe she needed a moment of silence to think, a brief walk to get her emotions under control—but Midna and silence did not go together very well. Very soon she had started talking about the mission the light spirit Lanayru had tasked them with. She knew he was still uneasy about the whole thing, and she was trying to convince him as they passed the remains of one of the Poes within the dungeon that he had defeated earlier.

His mind wandered back to their previous encounter with the ghost, where it floated above Lanayru's spring, staring at them with an expression almost akin to fear before it vanished. Despite Midna's insistence, Link was absolutely unconvinced that this creature was anything like the Poes they had fought.

Yes, Poes were ghosts, and he certainly believed that this boy was one too. But Poes were creepy, silent spirits who only appeared in the dark and always carried lanterns. Poes looked like haunting monsters, while this boy was so convincingly normal that Link and Midna almost mistook him for a human the first time they met him. Poes also couldn't be seen by normal people. Poes couldn't talk and display emotions that seemed far too _real_. And perhaps most worryingly, Poes also couldn't _fight off light spirits_ or _instantly freeze a whole spring_.

"Something just seems wrong," Link finally replied. "Why didn't he attack us in the Twilight Realm when we met him? And why was he trying to help that girl?"

Midna raised an eyebrow. "Um, did you forget that that girl _died_? He didn't do a great job of helping her. Maybe he was just trying to gain our trust. And did he ever say how she got hurt? He probably attacked her himself!"

She looked to Link for validation, but he simply gave a non-committal hum.

She scoffed. "I mean, it was trying to find Zelda, remember? Who knows what it would have done to her?"

He did not respond; pushing her on _that_ subject was a lost cause. He knew that she would never admit it, not in a million years, but Midna was extremely protective of Zelda, even before the princess had sacrificed her own power to save Midna's life.

By this point, they were almost back to the main chamber, where he had collected the flames that the four Poes had stolen in order to open the door. The air was slowly getting colder as they approached, and Link fought down a shudder.

He turned to Midna to ask her opinion on the sudden chill, but he paused at the look on her face. Her expression had become fierce.

"Wait," she hissed out quietly. "Do you hear that?"

He stopped, and listened. Sure enough, just barely above the sounds of skittering rats and other creatures who had made their home in the abandoned prison, was a nearly voiceless whisper. The sound was grating and unfamiliar, warbling unnaturally in the air and sending a shiver up his spine.

They both paused, listening with equal parts curiosity and unease, as the otherworldly sounds were responded to by another, slightly less inhuman voice. There was a brief silence, and then—

Midna flew into the room.

With a mental curse and a failed attempt to grab her with a swipe of his arm, he quickly followed her trail as she disappeared beyond the doorway.

A figure turned with a high-pitched yelp, whirling away from the empty corner it was facing. "Where did you—oh."

It was the same ghost boy who they had just been discussing, and he looked disappointed but not surprised to see them. The soft glow that surrounded his body his body made him stand out starkly in the dim lighting of the chamber. "Great, it's you."

"Great, it's the twelve-year-old monster," Midna mocked.

The ghost looked bewildered—and rather offended. "T-Twelve? I'm sixteen!"

"Twelve, sixteen, whatever. Doesn't really matter to me with you humans and your short lifespans." She raised an eyebrow. "Oh, wait. You're _not_ human, are you? And when were you going to tell us that?"

He frowned at the accusation. "It's not like I was _hiding_ it or anything," he said shortly. "Why does it matter? You're not human either!"

"It matters when the dead are wandering around and attacking light spirits!"

Link watched the ghost's reaction carefully as he (it?) winced. "L-Look, that was all a misunderstanding. The spirit attacked me first and I had to defend myself."

Midna snorted. "I mean, I don't like Lanayru much, either..." Link took note of the waver in her voice—something he only noticed because of the ridiculous amount of time he had spent with her over the course of their journey. He felt a wave of sympathy; the spirit's attack on her was clearly affecting her more than he had thought. "…but you wouldn't just be attacked by an ancient spirit of good for no reason."

It groaned. "Yeah, that's what I thought too, until it _happened_. I don't know what its problem was. All I said was I was trying to get home…" It shook its head. "No, no, that's not the point, okay? I'm sorry about what happened with the light spirit. Can we move past that? I, uh… was actually hoping you could help me."

"The last time we helped you, someone died," Link pointed out.

"Yeah, and I was trying to _save_ her!" The ghost threw its hands up in the air in a sign of frustration and scowled at Link. "Who even _are_ you? You weren't there! What happened to that wolf?"

Link opened his mouth… and then closed it. He wasn't sure how to answer that question, actually.

Fortunately, Midna, as always, was happy to speak up. "This guy is my servant," she said haughtily. Link fought down a frustrated sigh.

"Your servant?" It regarded them both with a skeptical raised eyebrow. "…Okay, whatever. Anyway, someone told me you guys were looking for a mirror that can go to the underworld. Is that true?"

Both Midna and Link immediately stiffened, exchanging grim glances. Link knew she was thinking the same thing as him. Lanayru's warnings flashed through his mind. This ghost had been asking where to find Zelda, and now it was asking about what could only be the Mirror of Twilight. It could not possibly be a coincidence that its goals once again just _happened_ to align perfectly with theirs.

Link placed a hand on the hilt of his sword, and he could faintly sense the now-familiar feeling of Twilit magic gathering around Midna. "Who told you that? Did someone send you?" she growled. "Was it Zant?"

"What?" The ghost seemed confused by their sudden hostility. "No one sent me. A ghost told me. Is Zant a ghost?"

"Really?" she hissed. "We've spent all day in this place, and not a single ghost has spoken."

"Right, because I'm sure people that the ghosts refer to as _hunters_ were totally willing to sit down and have a chat," the ghost muttered. Then louder, it said, "I just want to go home. And someone told me the mirror can get me there."

"And asking a light spirit about the princess of Hyrule _also_ somehow relates to you going home?"

"Um." The ghost blinked. "Yes, actually."

"No," Midna shot back. "I don't believe you. And if you think that we're going to let you get _anywhere_ near that mirror after what Zant has already done to it, you're more stupid than I thought!"

She released her magic.

It sailed through the air like a bolt of lightning, an attack Link had only seen once, when Midna had freed him from the Hyrule dungeons. The ghost looked stricken—before it blinked out of sight. The attack continued its path into the roof of the prison with a crash.

"It's still here. Find it, Link!" she demanded.

 _How_ , he was about to ask, but she was already withdrawing the Shadow Crystal and—oh, right. He would be able to see even an invisible enemy with a wolf's senses!

Zant's dark magic hit him and he transformed with the all-too-familiar sensation of bones cracking, reforming, senses expanding and instincts changing. He quickly spread out his senses, sniffing at the air until he found the source of the uncomfortable scent of decay that surrounded all of the ghosts. He briefly allowed himself to consider how this ghost felt slightly different from the Poes, with a scent of death that was both _stronger_ than theirs but also diluted with an odd tinge of warmth.

"What the _heck_?" the ghost's voice gasped. "You're the—"

Link pounced.

His lupine jaws clenched around the arm of the ghost, easily snatching it from the air. The ghost yelped in surprise, flickering back into visibility as they tumbled back to the ground. Link dug his teeth in harder, ignoring the rotten, acrid taste of the liquid that was seeping from the wound. He flicked his head, prepared to tear out a large chunk of whatever this ghost had instead of flesh—but suddenly the arm was no longer in his grasp. The ghost had somehow phased straight through his bite and had quickly backed up to hover several meters away.

So it had another thing in common with the Poes. That was fine; Link had experience fighting incorporeal enemies. In order to attack, they would also have to become tangible… and that would be his chance to strike.

The ghost clutched the wound that was dripping with an unearthly green substance to its chest. The look on its face had become dark, its glowing eyes intimidating enough that Link had a moment to wonder if provoking the creature really had been the wrong move after all.

"I am so _done_ ," the ghost snarled, "with everyone in this world trying to _attack me_!"

The final two words echoed with an inhuman wail that pushed Link and Midna back, flying into the wall behind them. The building rumbled, stone pieces loose from age tumbling to the ground from the ceiling and walls, and Link's heart skipped a beat as he feared Arbiter's Grounds would crumble down on top of them.

By the time he and Midna managed to regain their footing and look up, the ghost had disappeared. He frantically searched the room for it.

"I didn't even _do anything_!" The ghost boy's voice was suddenly right next to him. Though Link tried to turn, he was hit with a blast of energy that sent him careening across the room once more. He let out a pained whine; he could smell the burnt fur on his side and felt the seared flesh beneath. He shook it off, standing with bared teeth, lips curled into a snarl as he faced his opponent.

"What part of 'you attacked a light spirit' do you not understand?" Midna demanded. She fired off another wave of Twili magic. To their surprise, the ghost merely raised its hand—and created a glowing shield in mid-air. The blast was harmlessly absorbed into the green substance.

Midna and Link stared in shock. Just what in Farore's name _was_ this creature?

It gave them no time to ponder this as its hand glowed a deadly green. "It was self-defense," it growled. "Because literally everyone in this world seems to want me _more_ dead for some reason." The blast was sent toward Midna, and she managed to swing out of the way. What she didn't expect was the speed with which the ghost could create these attacks, and she failed to notice two more coming her way.

Link barked to warn her—but it was too late. The blasts hit her and she gasped, falling to the ground.

Link started to rush to her side—but then he noticed something strange. Her body was glowing green, the same color as the blasts, and she seemed to hold up her hand in wonder… as her body suddenly faded, as if it were suddenly see-through.

The ghost boy seemed just as stunned, and it floated in mid-air, an unreleased magic blast glowing above its hand.

Link saw his opportunity.

He leapt again at the distracted ghost, this time aiming for its chest where the Poes kept the most vulnerable part of their souls. This time he connected, latching on with another powerful bite, ignoring the uncomfortable shivers that racked his body. Biting this ghost was like dunking his head into a freezing river.

The ghost screamed in pain and phased through his grasp again, but Link allowed himself to fall to the ground, satisfied. The ghost had backed away again, panting. An odd thing for someone who was _dead_ to do, but panting nonetheless. He was slightly dismayed that the ghost didn't seem nearly as injured as he hoped, but at least he seemed to be tiring it out.

"All I did was ask for _help_." The ghost's voice cracked, and it sounded almost so broken that Link nearly wanted to comfort it. But a quick glance at Midna still writhing with the aftereffects of the ghost's magic stole his sympathy.

"We will… never help you," Midna spat as she twitched, green sparks making their way over her skin. "Not after Zant left it in _shards_!"

The ghost boy froze. It was uncanny, the way its body completely stilled; even its breathing had stopped. "Wait… shards?"

"Like you don't know!" she snarled. "Zant broke it into tiny pieces! All that's left is the stupid frame on the roof!"

"Broken? No… no, it can't be broken…" Its attention had completely drifted away from them, expression exceedingly horrified. "I was just up there, and there was no mirror…"

"Obviously you didn't _look_ hard enough," Midna said bitterly. "It was under the statue."

"No…" The ghost clenched its hands and Link felt the room chill even further, tiny ringlets of frost crawling across the floor. "You're _wrong_!"

The ghost vanished.

Link nearly jumped in surprise—and then quickly spread out his senses, using his sensitive ears and nose to try and get an idea of where the ghost may have gone. However, it seemed like he had truly left this time. The only evidence of his presence was the rubble that had crumbled during their fight and the small drops of green liquid that had bled from its wounds.

Finally lowering his guard, Link hurried over to Midna, reaching out for the Master Sword's presence to transform himself back into a Hylian as he went. He quickly helped her up. "Are you okay?

"Yes, yes, I'm fine." The energy that had surrounded her had vanished, and as she stood up she waved off his support. "What about the ghost?"

"He… it flew away. I couldn't sense it anymore."

"Damn it!" She stomped her foot on the ground before floating up and crossing her arms in midair. "We were so close! Now we'll have to find it again!"

Link considered pointing out that they really hadn't found it this time, and rather stumbled upon it by complete chance. But Midna's angry grumbling told him it might be better to hold his tongue for that.

"First the mirror… now this…" Midna's shoulders slumped, and Link had a rare moment where he could see how much all of this was weighing on her. It lasted for so long that Link almost considered reaching out and offering sympathy—but then in an instant, her façade was snapped back in place, her careless exterior back.

"Never mind. We'll find it again, no problem. Right, wolf-boy?" She let out her signature giggle, and if it sounded a little more forced than usual, Link wasn't going to say anything.

"I think we need to prepare first," Link said. "The ghost had some powers that I have never seen before."

"Right…" Midna scowled at the reminder. "How did it even get that kind of magic? None of the Poes can create energy blasts like that. It was much stronger than any ghost we've ever seen before! And it did something strange to me. For a moment, I felt like I wasn't solid anymore…" She frowned, and then stood in silence for a moment, lost in thought. Midna finally snapped her fingers. "Hey, I know! What if we asked that Jovanni guy you told me about? He knew some stuff about ghosts, right?"

"Well… I guess so…" Jovanni was a man that Link had met briefly in Castle Town while Midna was out of commission due to the light spirit's attack as forced by Zant. He had apparently made a deal with some Poes for wealth and been cursed to be frozen as a golden statue. Despite being a wolf at the time, the man had begged Link to help by collecting Poe souls. According to Jovanni, if he collected enough of those souls then he might be able to break the curse.

"Perfect. We have to go to Castle Town to stock up anyway." She smirked, and began floating away, glancing back over her shoulder. "Well? What are you waiting for?"

With a sigh, Link followed her as they continued making their way to the entrance of the dungeon.

oOoOo

They weren't wrong.

Even though Danny had checked the roof earlier, somehow it had changed in the scant time he had been within the prison. The statue on top had disappeared and was replaced with what was unmistakably a mirror frame.

He landed a few feet away and stared. It was vaguely circular, although only the bottom half seemed to remain. A tiny section of the mirror's glass was still present in the corner as the only evidence of what this object might once have been. The rest was completely gone. Through the dirtied and cracked remaining surface, he could faintly see the warbled reflection of his glow and blank expression.

He was unable to tear his eyes away or move any closer. He couldn't stand the thought of moving forward to touch it… because if he did… that would mean this was real.

The mirror, the first thing he'd found that had been a guaranteed connection to the Ghost Zone… was broken, and its pieces were nowhere to be found.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed the chapter! It was the longest one so far, and probably one of my favorites. ^^
> 
> So, ghost language is one of my favorite headcanons. I'm into conlanging (making up languages) and a friend asked me to make a language for ghosts and demons for his RP. But I realized how perfect it would be for DP so it's here! The language is called _k'shkst_ and I've laid out all of the basics for phonology and simple grammar. If you're interested, I did a write up of it on Reddit [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/conlangs/comments/j8cv4g/kshkst_a_voiceless_language_with_no_vowels/), although you might need some basic linguistics knowledge to understand everything!
> 
> Thanks to [aniura](https://archiveofourown.org/users/aniura/pseuds/aniura), [Hazama_d20](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hazama_d20/pseuds/Hazama_d20), and [fordtato](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fordtato/pseuds/Fordtato) for betaing this! Aniura writes [Just Fourteen](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26153824/chapters/63633916), and Hazama is writing [Talent Night](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26225452/chapters/63828814), both excellent stories! And if you like Gravity Falls, fordtato is the author of [Jersey Boy](https://archiveofourown.org/works/6885211/chapters/15708244). Please check them out! And thank you again for all your support. Love you all!


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Devastated by his discovery at Arbiter's Grounds, Danny returns to Castle Town.

Flying back to Castle Town was an exhausting ordeal. As the adrenaline from the fight faded, Danny realized his injuries were a bit worse than he had expected. That wolf’s bite had come dangerously close to his core and it _hurt_. He could feel his healing slowly getting to work on it, but it wasn’t fast enough to stop him from cringing every time he moved wrong.

And unfortunately, the pain was the only thing he _could_ really focus on as he flew back. Because he was absolutely, totally, completely, one hundred percent _not_ going to think about what else had just happened…

So, instead of thinking about his utterly hopeless situation and how he would probably never see his friends and family again… he thought of how much he _really_ hated that wolf-man and the imp right now.

Ultimately, it wasn’t their fault that his only hope was shattered, but they were certainly a great scapegoat. Even though he’d tried to explain himself, it felt like nothing was good enough for them. And besides, it was their fault that he currently had a freaking _hole_ in his chest.

Shortly after, he found himself standing outside of the entrance to Telma’s Bar.

He stared at the door, completely lacking the motivation to actually open it. He really didn’t think he could handle people right now. Honestly, it was all he could do to handle _life_ right now.

The decision was taken out of his hands when the door suddenly slammed open, making him start. A couple of laughing Hylian men stumbled out with the bar’s cheerful lamplight. The pleasant atmosphere within contrasted greatly with his dour mood. The two men paid him no heed as they walked away, and the door slowly creaked shut—but failed to click, leaving a sliver of light.

“For Din’s sake, close the door when you leave!” an angry voice within shouted. He heard footsteps and simply stood numbly as the door was swung open again. Telma’s irritated expression appeared in the doorway before morphing into surprise. “Oh, Danny! Good to see you, honey! What are you…” Her eyes took in his gruesome appearance before narrowing. “What happened? Are you okay?”

He mumbled something that vaguely resembled a “yes” to the ground. He had no energy nor motivation to even nod at this point.

He took a step forward as she opened the door wider—but he was halted by her firmly grabbing his shoulder. He glanced up. Her expression was near murderous.

“Is that _blood_?”

He looked down. Red liquid was slowing seeping into his shirt; apparently his wound had reopened at some point, and he hadn’t even noticed. Shouldn’t it have healed by now? It really didn’t even hurt compared to _some_ of the things his enemies had done to him. “Um. Maybe?”

“You were _injured_?” she hissed.

Despite having just gone through a crypt full of unspeakable horrors and facing a shapeshifter and an imp who could shoot lightning… Danny flinched at her tone.

Telma scared him more than any foe ever could.

“You are coming with me.” Her tone left no room for argument. Not that he would have had the energy (or courage) to argue anyway.

She led him through the lobby of the bar. It was late, and it seemed like only a few patrons still remained. Ashei, Auru, Shad, and Rusl were at their usual place at the back table. She strongly but carefully pushed him past everyone, ignoring their curious looks. “Auru, I’m going to need you to watch the bar for a bit,” she barked at him.

The older man raised an eyebrow. “Sure. Is Danny okay?”

Danny rolled his eyes. Did he really look that bad?

“I’m going to find out.” Her voice was low and serious, making Auru blink in surprise. Danny took the moment to survey the rest of the table. Shad and Rusl looked concerned, while Ashei’s face remained impassive, a calculating look in her eyes.

Danny looked away.

Telma prodded his back and marched him up the stairs.

He did not fight her as he shoved him into the room that he had been staying in and placed him on the edge of the bed. He stared at the wall as she left briefly before returning with a basket full of what appeared to be medical supplies. She withdrew bandages and glared at him. “Take off your shirt so I can bandage you properly,” she ordered.

He hesitantly complied, pulling off the shirt that he had borrowed. He stared at the bundle of cloth in his hand. It was completely darkened, covered in grime that could have been dirt or dried blood—it was hard to tell. He was pretty sure he hadn’t actually bled that much in human form, but it certainly _looked_ bad. It was overall quite a sight, only driven home further as he leaned forward and his matted bangs fell in front of his face, completely tangled and in disarray.

…No wonder everyone thought he looked like a mess.

“Alright, Danny,” Telma said as she sat next to him. “Care to explain what happened?”

He shook his head and stubbornly continued looking at the wall.

“I _told_ you you’d get hurt,” she growled. “But you _ignored me_ and went anyway, and now _I_ have to clean you up.” She took in a deep breath. “You know… the other day I watched you fight off a Shadow Beast without a scratch, and now you have a hole in your chest. So what in the name of all three goddesses could have _possibly_ have attacked you?”

He cringed at the anger in her voice. “It… it was nothing,” he offered weakly.

She glared, roughly tearing off some of the bandages and wrapping them around his stomach much more viciously than necessary. “ _’Nothing_ ’ doesn’t leave you _covered in blood_.”

He racked his brain for an explanation. There was no way he could tell her the truth, right? Would she even believe him if he said he was bitten by a werewolf? Maybe werewolves were a _thing_ here. Then again, how would he explain why the werewolf attacked him?

“It was a… ghost?” he offered weakly.

That excuse always worked back in Amity Park, anyway.

“A Poe?” she said, pausing in her bandaging to examine his expression. She was likely looking for any sign that he was lying. Well, the joke was on her. He was too tired to look guilty.

“No. I said a _ghost_.”

Telma snorted and resumed bandaging, finishing tying the ends. “A Poe _is_ a ghost. I suppose they don’t have Poes where you come from?”

He shrugged. Honestly, who knew? The Ghost Zone wasn’t called the Infinite Realms for nothing. There were plenty of types of ghosts he had never met.

“If the ghost was violent, it was almost definitely a Poe. I’m not surprised there were some in an ancient place like that. You can recognize them by the lantern they always carry.”

Something clicked in his brain. “Do they look like stitched dolls, too?” he asked. The ghost that had spoken that creepy language had held a lantern.

She shrugged. “I don’t know. Unlike _some_ people, I have never gone off on my own to haunted prisons far away in search of some foolish legend.” There was a note of accusation in her voice, but it was undermined by the exasperated fondness on her face.

He almost smiled.

“Speaking of that legend, did you find your mirror?”

Annnnnd… the smile was gone. He felt that pit of despair curl up in his chest, and he wondered how he’d managed to forget it for even a second.

His expression must have said it all. Telma sighed. “Sorry it didn’t work out, honey.”

Danny didn’t answer.

“You know… I think we could help far more if we knew _why_ you were looking for these things,” she said. “Shad claimed you didn’t tell him where you even heard these things or why you’re so desperate to get them.”

He shook his head. “It doesn’t even matter,” he mumbled. “I’m never going to find them anyway.”

Telma scowled, putting a hand on her hips. “Come on now,” she said. “I have seen and heard of you doing amazing things since getting here. I may not know the full story here, but your attitude is ridiculous. As someone with your abilities, I can’t believe you’re willing to give up so easily!”

“Yeah, but if you knew what happened…” His voice trailed off as her final sentence registered. Somewhere, even in the depths of hopelessness, something about the way she said that set off alarm bells in his head. She… she sounded like she _knew_ something. His heart started pounding in his ears as he looked up at her, fear creeping into his veins. “Wait, abilities...?”

Telma froze. A heavy, threatening silence stretched between them. She let out a breathy laugh. “Well, I guess that’s one way to tell you.”

The alarm bells were _shrieking_ now. He clenched his fist and held it behind his back. His ghost core hummed, sending subtle energy to circle around it, ready for use if needed. Sure, she didn’t seem hostile, but if he’d learned anything from this place, it was that everyone _hated_ him in ghost form.

“I wanted to tell you that first night you returned to the bar, but I didn’t get the chance. Or, well, _we_ didn’t get the chance. This is something the whole Resistance agreed to talk to you about.”

The unformed ectoblast in his hand sparked behind his back, and he just barely managed to stop his eyes from glowing instinctively at the terror he felt with her words. “The Resistance?” he repeated lowly, trying to sound intimidating instead of _increasingly panicked_. “How many people know now?”

She finally seemed to register his implied threat, and she raised an eyebrow, holding up her hands in surrender. “Calm down, Danny. The Resistance is just the name for our little group here. Me, Auru, Shad, Ashei, and Rusl. Everyone figured you out on their own—aside from Rusl, I guess, but we only realized it with his help.” She gave a disarming smile. “You really weren’t that good at hiding.”

…Well, okay, now _that_ was just unfair. He’d kept his secret from everyone but Jazz for two whole years but people here figured it out in _three days_. Granted, no one in Amity Park had been half as observant as these guys were, but _still!_

Telma chuckled at his offended look. “Sorry, honey, but it’s true. I’m not even sure why you tried to hide it so badly. Maybe it’s different where you come from, but your kind are highly respected here!”

“There are others?” he said, now a bit confused. Besides, he had a feeling that stupid light spirit would disagree with the idea of him being respected.

“Oh yes!” she insisted. Danny’s mind began running wild, trying to process exactly what _that_ meant for him. Did she just mean ghosts or… “They are rare, especially these days, but even our own princess uses magic. Everyone would be thrilled to discover you are a real mage!”

Were there kinds of human-like ghosts here? Or… or were there _halfas_ in this world? Were they—

And then her last words caught up to him and his brain froze.

“A… what?”

“A mage,” she repeated cheerfully. She scanned his expression, her grin falling at his lack of a reaction. “You… are a mage. Right?”

The energy behind his back sputtered and died.

oOoOo 

Danny drummed his fingers on the table, waiting for Telma to finish shooing out the last patrons and cleaning up their chairs. She was closing early that night in order to have a conversation between all of them. He ignored the eyes of all of the Resistance members, all of whom were either looking at him or clearly trying not to look at him as they sat at the same table.

He was a mage, apparently. Like some lame enemy in Doomed, or worse, a stupid fantasy RPG character. It was dumb.

But, well… even if he thought about it in video game terms, his fighting style _was_ kind of similar to a mage, what with the ecto-blasts. He’d started out in hand-to-hand combat, though. That had to count for something.

It was frustrating. Ashei had even warned him that Telma thought that about him, but it had really just kind of faded in the background with all of the other nonsense this world was throwing at him. And now he had no idea what he was getting himself into.

Magic was real, and he had it. Or so everyone thought. And now, in order to protect his _real_ secret, he’d have to pretend that he did. If only he knew literally _anything_ about how magic worked.

As the final bar guest finally left, Telma shut the door and turned to face them. “Okay, I think we’re ready to talk.” She approached the table and sat down, looking at each person in turn. “So, who would like to start?”

“I can,” Auru said. He looked at Danny. “Our group is working to protect Hyrule and our princess. We protect the people in ways that the guardsmen cannot—or, in many cases, do not.”

Shad spoke up. “We know that you are not from here, but we were hoping you could help us. Magic could be so useful.” He sighed. “And in exchange… we can more actively help you with whatever it is you are doing!”

“And… what would you want me to do?” Danny asked warily.

“Your magic could help us so much with… almost anything!” Shad exclaimed. “You can help Rusl fight off the monsters plaguing the fields, or help Auru procure food for refugees from Kakariko, or help us get through the barrier around the castle—”

“No,” Danny said flatly. Shad looked slightly hurt by his curt tone, so Danny hurried to clarify. “I mean… I dunno about that other stuff, but I already tried getting into the castle. I couldn’t.” His heart clenched at the memory.

“Oh…”

“Forgive us, Danny,” Auru quickly said. “Shad, as with all of us, are merely excited. We don’t know the full extent of your abilities. Just what can you do?”

Danny squirmed a bit in his seat. He really was hoping the conversation wouldn’t go there; he had no idea what magic could or couldn’t do in this world, so he had no way of knowing what was plausible or not. 

“W-Well… you already know I can get to places quickly,” Danny said, trying to stall while he thought of a lie. “And um… I don’t know if that would really help much? I don’t think I could take people with me.”

“But you can do more than that,” Auru said. “You healed your leg on that first day here, and somehow you took out a Shadow Beast in Kakariko.”

“And you disappeared from your room without any of us seeing you, even though we were downstairs all evening,” Shad exclaimed.

Danny blinked. He hadn’t even realized they’d noticed _that_ much. Maybe Telma was right when she said he’d done a horrible job hiding everything. “Yeah, you’re right,” he admitted reluctantly. “I can do more.”

Ashei placed her elbow on the table, her chin in her hand as she leaned forward. “How about a test?” she interjected. “You come on a mission with one of us, and you can show us what you can do.”

Telma raised an eyebrow. “Do you have a mission in mind, Ashei?”

“Of course.” She turned back to him with a smirk that Danny did not like _one bit._ “I’m off to Snowpeak next week. He can come with me. See the mountains for a bit, yeah?”

The barkeeper nodded in agreement. “That could work. What does everyone else think?” There was a chorus of mumbled agreement. She turned to face Danny. “And how about you, honey?”

“I…” Danny was unsure. He’d known about this “Resistance” for all of five minutes, and he wasn’t sure he was ready to get himself tangled in any new problems just yet. Any time spent with them would take away from his own goal to get home. _Not that you have more ideas on how to get home_ , a traitorous voice within him whispered.

Not to mention, Ashei’s smirk was making him nervous. She _definitely_ had other reasons that she wanted him to come with.

On the other hand… his core thrummed within, and he squeezed his eyes shut. He did want to help them. Not only did he _majorly_ owe them for giving him a place to stay when he had no money, but his ghost half thrived on helping others. And who knew? Maybe if he did give them a bit more information, they would be able to help him find a new way home, and he wouldn’t be stuck here any longer.

Danny opened his mouth to respond—

And the door to the bar swung open with a bang.

Everyone jumped at the loud noise. Telma turned toward it indignantly. “Excuse me, the sign outside says we are closed—”

“Sorry,” a tenor voice said as the newcomer stepped out of the shadowed doorway and into the bar’s light. Danny tensed, his eyes widening.

A young blond man clad in green stepped inside, looking sufficiently sheepish. “I wanted to speak to the Resistance. I hope I’m not interrupting?”

“Of course not!” Telma’s stern demeanor immediately melted into her usual welcoming expression, a wide smile on her face. “We’re always happy to see you!”

The man walked in, paused, and then locked eyes with Danny.

_Holy shit._

“You have great timing,” Telma said. “We’re having a meeting right now.” She looked at Danny with a broad smile. “Danny, this is Link. He is the newest member of the Resistance.”

Danny was _so_ screwed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> absolutely nothing in this chapter was in my outline and tbh it totally threw off my plans for the next few chapters but here you goooo
> 
> This is the shortest chapter so far (barring Chapter 1), but there are already 1500 words for Chapter 11 written. No promises but I can try to get it out sooner, since I know this is pretty pathetic for a month wait.
> 
> A few shout outs: big thanks again to [Hazama_d20](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hazama_d20/pseuds/Hazama_d20), [aniura](https://archiveofourown.org/users/aniura/pseuds/aniura), and [fordtato](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fordtato/pseuds/Fordtato) for betaing! Please check out their fics! Also, I should have mentioned this a billion years ago, but [The Literary Lord](https://www.fanfiction.net/u/2801001/The-Literary-Lord) and their friend were kind enough to make a [TV tropes page](https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Fanfic/EidolonInterloper) for this fic. It's such an enormous honor and very awesome. :) And finally, wanted to give a huge thanks to all of you lovely commenters as always. Please continue to let me know what you think—whether you have some criticism or just wanna say you enjoyed it, I love hearing from you!


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Danny meets Link as a human for the first time. He learns that Link does something pretty horrifying in his spare time.

The young man, or wolf, or… werewolf or shapeshifter or _whatever the hell he was_ took a seat at the table immediately opposite Danny. He offered a warm smile to Rusl, friendly waves to the Resistance members, and a polite nod to Danny.

In response Danny merely stared at him, open-mouthed in disbelief and internally panicking so hard it was a miracle that he didn’t turn invisible out of pure instinct.

“Link, we’re just talking to Danny about helping us with our mission. He’s not from Hyrule, but we’ve offered to help him find some information he needs in exchange for his help,” Telma said, apparently not noticing Danny’s internal plight.

Shad, Auru, and Rusl, on the other hand, were all regarding Danny with confused looks. Ashei merely had an eyebrow raised in interest.

“That’s good. We can always use more help,” Link said neutrally, examining Danny with an expression that gave away none of his thoughts. That only made Danny panic harder. Did the man _recognize_ him? What the heck was he going to do if he did?

“And how did your journey go, Link?” Telma inquired. “Did you find the mirror?”

Everyone’s gazes finally left Danny and snapped to Link, allowing the boy to sigh in relief. He was so busy still mentally planning potential escape routes, both ghost and human, that he almost missed the Hylian’s answer.

“I did,” Link said, “but it was broken. Luckily, it can be fixed.”

Wait…

“It… It can be fixed?” Danny gasped.

He hadn’t realized he’d repeated that aloud until Link turned to him, lips pursed in confusion. “That’s… what I said, yes.”

Danny realized that Ashei was looking at him intently again, but he ignored her as he sank into his chair in relief. There was no denying the stirring hope he felt at last. Sure, even if he somehow managed to get the mirror shards, he wouldn’t know how to put them together. He had a feeling duct tape probably didn’t exist in Hyrule. But…

It was something. And right now, Danny very very desperately needed _something._

Telma laughed and turned to Link. “Sorry, honey. Danny’s probably just interested because he is looking for a mirror of his own. He went to Arbiter’s Grounds not long after you did. We had no idea you were both there until Auru returned and told us.”

Danny froze as Link turned to him.

“He went to Arbiter’s Grounds?” Link asked. “And you survived the monsters?” Danny shrunk under the man’s intense gaze.

“I-I mean, I didn’t see any monsters,” Danny replied weakly. And, hey, that _was_ the truth. Aside from that one ghost, who compared to most of the non-humans he met in Hyrule had been a _saint_ , there had been nothing.

Except Link himself and his creepy imp friend. Danny wondered where she was now.

“Really?” Telma demanded, startling Danny out of his thoughts. “You were attacked by a Poe! I saw the injuries myself!”

Danny grimaced. Once again, something stupid he had said in the moment was coming back to haunt him. No pun intended.

“Really?” Link frowned. “Hmm, I did fight an odd ghost there.”

Danny barely held back a groan.

If there was some way he could confidently say he wouldn’t just come back again as a ghost, he probably would have been ready to die right on the spot.

“Where are you off to next, then?” Telma asked Link.

Link frowned. “I’m not sure. The directions to the shards were very vague. One of them was said to be in the mountains. Perhaps I could head to Snowpeak?”

“What a coincidence!” Telma beamed. “Ashei is investigating Snowpeak!”

“I am,” Ashei confirmed. “The Zoras have told me about a monster there that has been stealing fish. I am planning to go to investigate and put a stop to it if necessary.”

Link nodded. “I can help. Maybe this monster is related to the mirror shards. Farore knows that monsters seem to appear whenever this sort of magic is involved…”

“Excellent.” Telma clapped her hands. “So, Danny, you can go with Link and Ashei to Snowpeak—”

“No!” Danny blurted out.

The whole Resistance stared at him in surprise.

Danny chuckled awkwardly, smiling in a way that probably looked more like he was in deep pain than anything comforting. “I mean uh… maybe! Maybe, yeah. I mean, gotta check my schedule and stuff…”

The look on Ashei’s face confirmed that she was definitely not buying his excuse, and Link was looking suspicious as well. Danny had to actively fight to suppress the urge to bury his face in his hands and let out a scream of frustration.

Telma blinked. “Well… okay, honey. That’s fine. They won’t be leaving until next week anyway, so you have some time to decide.”

“I must say, I do hope you accept—if only because I’d love to have you help me with my research on the Oocca,” Shad told Danny lightly. “And of course I’m eager to delve more into the mystery you asked me about and why you’re so interested in it.”

Danny nodded absently. If it had been just Ashei, maybe he would have accepted this mission. But now that he would also be accompanied by the crazy wolf-man? Yeah, no, he really wasn’t feeling _that_. Besides, Link had said that the pieces were somewhere in Hyrule, and the mirror could be fixed! Danny needed to spend his time looking for those, not helping the Resistance with their little odd jobs.

“Well,” said Auru finally, standing up and pushing in his chair, “if that is all for now, I believe I will be heading to bed. I can’t stay awake quite as long as I could when I was young.”

“I should be off as well,” Rusl said, following Auru’s example. “I will be leaving early tomorrow to head back to Ordon. Can’t leave Uli alone for too long. The baby is due soon!”

“Oh, that’s right!” Shad gushed. “You are having another baby soon, aren’t you? How exciting!”

Shad followed Auru and Rusl as they retreated up the stairs. Telma stood up. “Well, normally the bar would still be open, so I’m not quite ready to turn in yet. Suppose I’ll get some cleaning done in the back. Link, did you need a place to stay for the night?”

Link shook his head. “I’ll sleep out in the field like I always do.”

Telma shook her head with a fond smile. “I’ll never quite understand you, boy. Well, if you ever change your mind, we’ll always have a bed here for you…”

She and Link continued speaking as she led him to the door, leaving Danny and Ashei alone at the table.

Ashei leaned over to Danny. “Just so you know… if you don’t come on this mission, I’m telling everyone that you’re not really a mage,” she whispered conversationally.

“Wh-What?” Danny’s eyes widened. “Are you… _blackmailing_ me?”

She smirked. “Not if you say yes.”

He watched as she also pushed out her chair and left the table, walking up the stairs without a backwards glance as he reminded himself of how _completely and utterly screwed he was_. But as he stood to follow her up the staircase, he realized that not everyone had left the room. Danny tensed as he realized it was Link.

The Hylian man stepped forward, holding out a hand. “I wanted to meet you properly before I go. I’m Link.”

“D-Danny,” he barely croaked out, hardly managing to force himself to reach out and clasp his hand. He pulled away as soon as he felt it was socially acceptable to do so. Maybe not socially acceptable enough, because Link frowned down at his hanging hand. Or maybe he was just confused about why Danny felt so cold.

“Have we met before?” Link asked finally, looking back up to meet Danny’s eyes. There was an curious look on Link’s face that Danny did _not_ like.

“Nope,” Danny said quickly. “No, absolutely no. I’ve never seen you in my life. I’ve never… never even seen someone that _looks_ like you! N-Not that you look weird, I’m just saying, no, we’ve never met!”

Link blinked, taking a moment to process his odd response before apparently filing it away. He probably just thought Danny _always_ acted like that. Ancients, he really wouldn’t be surprised at this point. This world made him so on edge.

“I’m looking forward to seeing your magic,” Link said. “I know a mage. She’s very strong, but her magic is… different than most.”

“Oh,” Danny said, having no idea how else to reply.

“Can you show me what you can do?”

Danny huffed, a surge of annoyance overwhelming his fear. The bandaged wound on his chest twinged. This guy had _bit_ him yesterday, and it _still hurt_! He had zero interest in talking with him. “No,” he said stubbornly. “I’m not just going to sit here and… and _perform_ for you! I mean, how would you like if I asked you to just… show off _your_ magic or something?”

Link’s eyes widened in surprise—probably the first real emotion Danny had seen from him aside from polite attention. “I don’t have any magic.”

“Oh yeah?” Danny clenched his fists and glared. “You sure you don’t have powers? Like… transforming or something?” Oh, yes. He knew he was _really_ pushing it there—both the extent of Link’s patience and probably his own secret. But Danny liked to imagine that there might have actually been a spark of shock in Link’s eyes that time and that made it all worth it.

Danny finally turned stiffly, his back facing the young Hylian man. “So how about you leave me alone and we won’t have any problems, okay?”

Stomping dramatically, Danny marched up the stairs.

As soon as he reached the room he was staying in, he shut the door softly, despite how badly he wanted to slam it closed. (Yes, he hated Link, but he didn’t want the whole _bar_ to know that.) He considered collapsing on the bed—it _did_ look quite tempting after his endless flying around that had been going on lately and the general overwhelming mood swings he’d been having—but instead he looked out the window and transformed.

He phased through the wall and flew over Castle Town, trying to stay invisible. He didn’t really know what he was doing, all he knew is that he wanted _out_ of there. He eventually settled on the roof of a colorful tent near the eastern entrance to the city, staring up at the sky and admiring the stars. The lack of electric lights meant that even in the center of the city the stars were easier to see than they were at home.

And then he realized: these stars were _…_ _awfully familiar_. He recognized them. He could see Orion on one end, Cassiopeia on the other. The Big Dipper. The North Star and Ursa Minor.

His head started spinning. Did that mean he was on Earth? Was this, like… a dystopian future? Some strange version of the past that the history books never understood?

But then, the more he looked… the more he realized they were _slightly_ off. There were two stars by Orion’s bow that weren’t supposed to be there. Cassiopeia wasn’t in the right area of the sky. What did that mean? Was he on Earth, just in some other time period? It made no sense!

It sent an unexpected pang of homesickness through him. It was like the sky was mocking him, a fake facsimile of the stars he’d studied religiously back at home, back when his dreams of becoming an astronaut might have been something potentially realistic and not just a childhood fantasy.

He knew there was an old saying that looking at the stars could bring comfort to those away from their families, as they knew they were looking up at the same sky. But _were they_? He was somewhere completely different, either in another time period or a separate _universe_ , and these stupid lookalike stars were simply twinkling impassively above.

He clenched his fists and squeezed his eyes shut. That was enough of stargazing.

A moment later, a soft whining noise met his ears. He tentatively opened his eyes and glanced around, trying to find the source of the sound.

What he found was a puppy, donned in brown and white fur, pawing at a tree. Danny frowned down at the dog; the alley was empty aside from it, but its behavior of clawing at the trunk was undeniably odd.

Danny cautiously floated over toward the tree. If he squinted, he thought he could see something caught in the lower branches.

When he approached, the dog immediately perked up, no doubt sensing him despite his invisibility. It stared right at him and its ears fell back, tail tucking between its legs as it whimpered and stepped back. He huffed in disappointment. In his ghost form (and sometimes even in human form) animals tended to be instinctively afraid of him. Something about the paranormal just set off their danger instincts.

He dropped back into visibility and held out his hands, trying to look as non-threatening as possible. “Hey, it’s okay,” he said softly, “I’m not here to hurt you.” He stepped up to the tree and he watched the puppy’s eyes go wild in terror, backing up even more and letting out warning growls made fully pathetic by the shaking of its small body. He reached up into the branch—he had to float slightly to get to it—and snatched the item out of the tree. Once it was in his hand, he recognized it as a bone.

He blinked at it and then knelt in front of the shivering dog but did not step any closer. “Is this yours?” he asked it softly.

The dog whined but hesitantly stepped forward. He stayed still, trying not to make any sudden movements to startle it away. It approached cautiously before grabbing the toy in its mouth. It darted off immediately, retreating to the wall it had backed against.

He smiled. “See? All better, right?” The dog didn’t move, eyeing him warily. Danny sighed, folding his legs under him. “Guess you’re afraid of me like everyone else, huh. That’s fine. I get that a lot.”

He leaned against the nearby dog and watched as the animal decided to ignore his presence in favor of gnawing at the bone.

“You remind me of a dog I know back home,” Danny said at length. “He’s about your size. …Well, when he’s happy. But when he’s angry, he gets huge.” He frowned. “He’s also green. And dead. But he has a weakness for chewing on toys, too.” He paused, surprised by the flood of loneliness that swept through him. “I miss him. I miss… everyone from home.”

His hand rested on the dog’s back. The animal tensed briefly, but as Danny began to pet it gently, it finally relaxed.

Now that he’d admitted it out loud, his thoughts couldn’t stop straying back to Amity Park. He really, _really_ missed it. He missed Sam and Tucker, he missed Jazz, he missed his parents. The Resistance had been unbelievably kind to him, but it just _wasn’t the same_. All he wanted was to go home and hug his friends and family. He would never take them for granted ever again. He’d even love to go back to school or fight some ghosts. It was better than fighting werewolves.

And… he didn’t even know if he’d ever see them again. For all he knew, he might be stuck here _forever_ …

He heard the dog release a slight huff beside him, and he blinked in surprise, drawn from his thoughts. He realized that the dog was curled up around the bone, eyes closed and breathing even. He’d been absentmindedly petting it for so long that it had fallen asleep.

He stood up, grateful that ghosts didn’t have real bones or muscles, otherwise his legs would have _definitely_ fallen asleep from sitting on them for so long. With one final glance at the puppy, he began making his way back towards Telma’s Bar.

The stars continued to twinkle above, unchanging.

oOoOo

The next day was very weird for Danny.

He sat at the table, eating breakfast provided to him by Telma (who turned out to be an incredible cook) and listening to Shad ramble on about some research project of his. Something about tiny people with wings. Shad showed him a picture, and they looked like an uncanny combination of pale birds with human faces. He was a bit less inclined to listen after that.

(There were enough horrifying creatures in Hyrule already. He didn’t want to worry about _human chickens_ too.)

So as Shad’s words went in one ear and out the other, Danny tried to form a plan. He had been in a constant state of action since arriving in Hyrule, so it was weird to kind of have time to actually sit and think.

Link said he was going to hunt down the shards to put the mirror back together. This was Danny’s only lead, and it frustrated him that he wasn’t sure how to go about following it.

Part of him wanted to just approach Link in ghost form and demand to know where the mirror pieces were. But, well… even though it had pretty much healed, he still hadn’t forgotten their last meeting. He didn’t really want another one, and that was _exactly_ what would happen in another confrontation. Link had hardly been willing to listen last time.

Danny also considered asking in human form. Would that be too suspicious? He had no clue. The Resistance members had already drawn some weird conclusions about him and his powers. Everyone was so much more observant here. He had a horrible feeling that if they had seen his ghost form, they might have made an even more accurate interpretation. He really didn’t want to do anything that might connect his human form with his ghost form for Link.

And besides, even if he _wanted_ to ask, Link hadn’t returned that morning. Telma said that was pretty normal—he generally kept to himself, she claimed. Slept under the stars, travelled all over Hyrule, only came back when he needed something or wanted to help. She didn’t fully know what he did with his time. The only guaranteed time that Danny could talk to him would be in four days, when Ashei and Link were heading to Snowpeak together.

As for that… Danny sighed. Ashei _really_ wanted him to go. And he hated that he didn’t know why. That woman was a total enigma, and quite frankly, she terrified him. She knew even more about him than the others did and wasn’t afraid to let him know it. He didn’t know what her motivations were, but he was almost certain she wanted to bring him along so that she could learn more about his abilities.

Danny didn’t want to go with Link anywhere, either. But on the other hand, if he went, Link might lead him to one of the mirror shards.

It was a huge dilemma.

Danny finished his food and stood up. “Sorry, Shad,” he said, interrupting the eager young man, “I think I’m going to head out into town for a bit. I haven’t really had a chance to see it, you know?”

The man blinked. “Oh… oh, yes, of course!” he said. “You should! Castle Town is the biggest city in the country, and a true marvel if I do say so myself! In fact, why don’t I give you a tour—”

“No, that’s okay,” Danny said quickly. “You should, uh, keep researching those… Ock… um…?”

“Oocca?” Shad smiled. “Yes, I suppose I could. Very well. I’ll see you later!”

Danny found himself walking around the busy town square moments later. He was glad that no one seemed to spare him a second glance; now that he was wearing clothes that fit in with the time period, he seemed to blend right in, despite his ears.

He strolled by many shops. He couldn’t read any of the signs, of course, nor did he have money even if he could, but just looking into the windows calmed him. He allowed his mind to wander.

After wandering around the city until he lost count of how many loops he’d done, he realized he was undeniably bored. He had nothing to do.

…But then a flash of green caught his eye.

It was Link, wandering through the town, completely unaware of Danny’s eyes on him. Danny watched as he passed by a stall and waved at the shopkeeper, sending a friendly smile and wave. It was obvious that the people in town recognized Link and liked him.

A different thought occurred to Danny as he watched, however. He needed to learn more about Link, and this was a perfect opportunity.

Slipping into a nearby alley, he faded from visibility.

oOoOo

As he made his way through Castle Town, Link had the strangest feeling of being watched.

“Midna,” he whispered discreetly to his shadow as a noisy bunch of young women passed them, “is anyone following us?”

“I haven’t seen anyone,” she replied quietly, “but I’ll keep an eye out.”

He had just completed a routine visit to Jovani, where he had offered up the Poe souls he had collected. Jovani’s curse was slowly improving—he could move now, whereas before he’d been totally frozen—but his body was still made of nothing but gold and gems. Jovani _had_ given him a lantern that he would need to try out later, however.

He also realized that despite Midna’s suggestion to talk to Jovani about the ghost they fought at Arbiter’s Grounds, he hadn’t been able to ask: he couldn’t exactly speak as a wolf.

He spent the rest of the day completing the usual tasks—helping out denizens of Castle Town who needed it, spending some time at the shops to buy more arrows or other weapons he needed, and so on. Everything was horribly expensive in the city proper, but he didn’t have much of a choice. It didn’t matter; dungeon crawling paid surprisingly well.

He’d been actually hoping to speak with the boy named Danny again. His comment about him being able to “transform” had confused him greatly. He wasn’t entirely sure it mattered if this boy knew. It wasn’t like he really cared if anyone knew he became a wolf, but most people probably wouldn’t believe him so he didn’t bother talking about it. But the fact that he’d seemed to know had caught his attention.

He’d asked Midna about Danny when they’d set up camp outside of town for the night. “I don’t think he’s a mage,” Midna had said flatly.

“Why not?” Link frowned as he set out the bedroll.

“I can sense energy, and magic has a… very specific feeling to it. _Especially_ Hylian magic,” Midna explained. “Hylians with magic always have this uncomfortable, too-hot feeling. Like Zelda did.” Her voice quieted for a moment, just as it always did when talking about the princess. “…Anyway, he feels the opposite. If he wasn’t so clearly human, I’d almost say he has Twili magic.”

“ _Really_?” Now _that_ was unexpected. Link had known something had to be up with him, but for a denizen of the light realm to have Twilight magic? It brought his thoughts back to Lanayru’s story, wherein the spirit had explained that the Twili had originally been humans that used corrupted powers to try and take the goddesses’ power for themselves.

He felt a shiver go up his spine. Did that mean that Danny was practicing dark magic?

“It’s still not really the same,” Midna continued, oblivious to his thoughts. “He’s just… cold. And it’s not really the same as magic would be anyway. Rather than an external power, it’s almost like… he’s made of it?” She shrugged. “I don’t know. He’s weird. But he’s from out of the country, right? Maybe non-Hyrulians just have some kind of magic of their own.”

Link’s concerns weren’t assuaged, but unfortunately, Danny wasn’t there today. When he arrived at Telma’s Bar, Shad had explained he’d just missed the boy. He had left to explore the town. Link spent a couple of hours wandering around, hoping to catch him in the crowd, but he had no such luck. So, instead he ate dinner at Telma’s Bar (where Danny _still_ didn’t return) before finally heading out into the field for the evening.

He remembered the lantern that Jovani had given him earlier that day. According to the cursed man, the lantern would glow blue when a Poe was nearby and didn’t need any oil. Link withdrew the lantern from his pouch and held it up. As soon as it was touching the air, the lantern unexpectedly lit up with a green flame.

Link tilted his head in confusion. That seemed fine, but… didn’t Jovani say it was supposed to be blue?

“Is that the thing that Jovani gave you?” Midna said, popping out of his shadow. “Does that mean it’s working?”

Link frowned uncertainly and held the lantern out so she could see. As he moved it slightly to his left, it flared briefly—before dulling back to a dim shine.

“I’ve never seen a green Poe,” Midna said. “Maybe it’s broken?”

Link shook his head slowly. He had a feeling that wasn’t quite the answer. Then he blinked, suddenly realizing why the color seemed familiar. “Wait. Do you remember the ghost at Arbiter’s Grounds? It used an energy that was the exact same color.”

Midna blinked, and then her eyes narrowed. “Are you telling me that he’s _here_?” she hissed, hands balled in fists as she glared around the empty field. Not a soul was in sight, but that didn’t mean much where ghosts were concerned.

“It could be a different ghost,” Link said hastily, trying to calm her down. He knew she was _still_ stewing in anger over their last confrontation. It hadn’t exactly gone well for them, especially for her. “I just meant that not all ghosts seem to have blue energy.”

“Well,” Midna said, lifting her chin in the air and staring at the emptiness around them, “if a ghost _is_ here, they’d better leave before I decide to do something to them!”

Silence met her. Link sighed, just about to put the lantern at his waist—

And then the green light vanished.

“I knew it!” she growled. “He was—”

“ _Someone_ was here, but they’re gone now,” Link interrupted her. “We don’t know if it was the same ghost.”

“Who else could it be?” she demanded. “Have you ever seen any other ghost in Hyrule with those powers?” She crossed her arms. “He was so much stronger than the Poes. I bet if you captured _his_ soul, you’d free Jovani from his curse instantly.”

Link grimaced. There were… a lot of reasons he felt opposed to that. He hadn’t minded taking out the Poes before, as they’d clearly seemed violent, but there was a difference between slaying a mindlessly evil creature for a noble cause… and slaying a sentient, talkative ghost who he _still_ wasn’t certain even had bad intentions.

He sighed and attached the lantern to his belt. Without another word, he continued down the path, determined to find a place to set up camp for the night. He began wandering farther out into the southern field. As he approached the pathway that led to the Great Bridge of Hylia, the lantern began shimmering again. But this time, when he held it up, it contained a faint blue glow.

Glancing around only long enough to determine no humans were in sight, he transformed into a wolf. He spread out his animal senses, trying to decide where the Poe was.

He caught its scent on the wind, a faint impression of decay and anger. Using his powerful muscles in this form he took off quickly in its direction. Midna only had enough time to land on his back and yelp before he was off.

He found the Poe on a nearby cliffside. Using Midna’s magic to help him leap farther than he normally would be able to, he jumped up beside it. He barely managed to dodge a scythe as it slashed toward him.

Link danced around the Poe, growling faintly. As the ghost brandished its lantern and held it out as though prepared to strike with it, Link struck. He lunged forward and knocked the Poe to the ground. With an ethereal cry, it tumbled to the ground. Flipping skillfully into the air, Link landed directly over its chest, dug in his teeth, and _pulled_ ,

With a crackling sound, an orb of darkness was pulled from the Poe’s chest. It emitted an inhuman screech before fading away without a trace. Link held the soul above his head, a perfect orb that glowed with an eerie power, pulsating and humming like an electric heart. Midna snapped her fingers, and the soul faded into twilight particles.

“Not bad,” she said. “That makes it, what, twenty-one souls?”

At that, Link could have sworn he heard a gasp of horror. But, when he looked around, he saw nothing. He shrugged.

Must have been his imagination.

oOoOo

Danny stumbled backward, hitting a wall as he hid behind a nearby rock and inadvertently flickering back into visibility.

He… He’d just watched Link pull out that ghost’s _core_.

There were few ways to really kill a ghost. They were already dead. Danny didn’t really understand it all; Frostbite had tried to tell him, but he hadn’t paid much attention.

But he _did_ know that a ghost’s core was its very _being_. Like the imp said, its _soul_. The most intimate part of their self. It wasn’t just like a heart, or a brain, or any other organ; it _was_ the ghost. You couldn’t just… remove it from a ghost. Tearing out a core would destroy the ghost completely. No more afterlife, no more existence. It would just be… _gone_.

Danny had been following Link all day, and for a while, he’d been surprised at how kindhearted the Hylian man seemed to be. He helped random citizens and seemed happy to volunteer to help to an almost ridiculous extent. He was self-sacrificing and generous to a fault.

But now? Link had murdered that ghost. Worse than murdered it! He’d _erased it from existence_ in the most invasive and cruel way possible. He’d sat there, clenching the ghost core in his teeth, ignoring the pained screams of the Poe as he tore it out and stole its still-beating essence.

And Link knew it. _He knew what he was doing_. He had hunted down this ghost, which hadn’t even been violent until they’d approached, and taken it out mercilessly without a second thought.

And in a few days, Danny was about to go on a cross country trip with him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, I'm alive! Sorry this took so long. I took on a couple of fanfic challenges in November and December and they took much longer than I expected. (Didn't help that this chapter was REALLY hard to write...) As a result I have two new Danny Phantom stories, both complete! [One of them](https://archiveofourown.org/works/27782122)'s a horror/tragedy 6-shot, [the other](https://archiveofourown.org/works/28298556) is a humor oneshot. Check them out if you're interested. :) Btw, I streamed Twilight Princess on [my Twitch](https://www.twitch.tv/twilightwakeroftime) in preparation for this chapter, and I'd love to see you there for future streams! :D
> 
> About the constellations: for those who don't know, Zelda games generally use a real life star map. There are NPCs in Wind Waker that will point out constellations like the Big Dipper to you. Twilight Princess is slightly more debated on whether it uses real constellations or not, but I'm 90% sure I saw Orion when I turned on the game to check so I'm going with "yes it has the same stars but it's a bit off".
> 
> Thanks as always to [Hazama_d20](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hazama_d20/pseuds/Hazama_d20), [aniura](https://archiveofourown.org/users/aniura/pseuds/aniura), and [fordtato](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fordtato/pseuds/Fordtato) for betaing! And all of your comments/kudos/etc. make me so happy. You're too nice. <3


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Danny, Link, and Ashei search for a monster in the Snowpeak region.

Danny went through great pains to avoid Link for the next few days. And for the most part, he was successful.

He initially spent most of his time away from the bar, strolling aimlessly around Castle Town. Unfortunately, this had the side effect of letting his thoughts wander, and that only made him think more of how he was supposed to be taking his midterms now, not awaiting a trip with a murderous werewolf…

So to stave off the depression, he spent some more time with the Resistance members. Shad was extremely eager to try and teach Danny how to read Hylian. Danny had been reluctant—after all, he was nearly failing English class, so he really doubted he could learn another language so quickly—but it turned out to be easier than he expected. The Hylian alphabet had a shocking number of similarities to his own, right down to the number of letters. Some of them even looked similar. The 'n' and 's' were almost the same, but with added dots or circles or extra long lines. The hardest letters to remember were those that looked like other letters from home, but weren't. Danny cursed whoever had decided that 'r' in Hylian had to look like a capital 'd'.

By the end of the week, Danny could somewhat interpret single words or short phrases. An actual book still made his head swim, and he honestly couldn't write much beyond his own name, but it was progress.

Ashei also dragged him into a sword lesson at one point. Just like things had gone with Dora, everything went right over his head. Despite this, Ashei was a stern but surprisingly patient teacher. He felt much better trying to learn from her than the ghost knight that had attempted to teach him in the Ghost Zone. She focused mostly on grip and stance, which was review for Danny. He wasn't complaining, though; he needed the review, and knowing he remembered some things made him a bit more confident.

This, as well as spending a couple of days helping Telma with the bar (as he felt like he had to pay her back somehow), made time fly by far too quickly.

oOo

A few days later, Danny found himself reluctantly following Link and Ashei in a place called Zora's Domain.

Getting to this area had not been easy. It was a fair distance from Castle Town, and they had to hike alongside a river for most of it. Danny could now safely say that flying across this country was much, much better than walking across it. Danny was now soaking wet, tired, miserable, and forced to go on this stupid journey with two people who were the closest to figuring out his secret.

He tried to keep in mind that a shard of that mirror was supposedly in the area they were heading.

Perhaps if he hadn't been so frustrated, he might have been able to appreciate the beauty of this area. It was an idyllic hideaway consisting of a large pond, several waterfalls gleaming around it. The sunset created gorgeous patterns on the surface of the water. On top of it all, there were pieces of intricate architecture dotted around the edges of the water, including pillars and structures with carved coral-like patterns, many of which even extended underwater.

It also turned out that the rock people in Castle Town weren't the only weird creatures Hyrule had to offer. Along the shorelines (and occasionally in the water?) he spotted fish-like creatures with dainty fins and almost fairy-like blue skin. Some of them wore terrifying armor with bugged eyes that looked so alien he was almost certain they were some kind of ghost at first.

"What are those things?" he whispered to Ashei, who he was following.

Link, who was right next to her, shot a curious look over his shoulder as Ashei responded, "Zoras."

"You've never seen a Zora?" Link inquired. "I thought they lived everywhere."

"Oh they do," Ashei said, still looking straight ahead as she walked. "They're even in Termina."

Link furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. Danny scowled. "Yeah, well, they don't live in Amity Park," he grumbled.

"Is Amity Park where you're from?" Link asked.

It occurred to Danny that these were the most words the trio had exchanged over the course of their entire journey. Neither Ashei nor Link were particularly known for small talk and Danny had been so annoyed that he was even there to begin with that he hadn't felt like trying to change that. Quite frankly, he had nothing to say to Link except you murdered that ghost and probably dozens of others and I did absolutely nothing to stop it—

"Th-That's none of your business," Danny snapped at Link with sudden viciousness. Even Ashei looked a bit surprised at his biting tone. "How about you just—"

Danny's comment was cut off by three heads with bug eyed helmets popping out of the water next to him. He yelped, jumping back.

"What is a group of humans doing here?" one of them asked, its voice surprisingly melodic considering its unnatural armor.

Ashei was unfazed by their appearance and she stepped forward. "I heard that a monster from Snowpeak was stealing food, yeah? We are here to help."

"Did anyone ask for humans to come and help us?" one of the Zoras whispered to the other, just loud enough for Danny's sensitive hearing to pick up. "Why do they care?"

"Be nice," another scolded, just as quietly. "That one in green saved the prince!"

Ashei withdrew a notepad from her pouch and held it up expectantly. "I want to interview some Zoras on what you saw before we go to the mountain and investigate ourselves," she said. "Tell me what you saw."

The Zoras exchanged glances. "Well," one of them said, "many have described a great beast coated in white fur appearing from the cave that leads to Snowpeak. It never stays long, but it often steals Reekfish."

"Reekfish?"

"They live only in Zora's Domain," the same Zora said proudly. "Our fishermen are the only ones who know how to capture them."

"I bet that this beast is related to the weather at Snowpeak, too," one of the other Zoras added.

Ashei tilted her head. "Weather?"

"The blizzards!" the Zora exclaimed. "Snowpeak's usually cold, but it's always storming now. That never happens at this time of year!"

Ashei frowned thoughtfully. "I see. Tell me more about the beast. How often has it appeared?"

As the Zoras and Ashei continued to talk, Danny looked over at Link, who was standing there as silently as he was. But instead of cold and frustrated, Link seemed too serious, too calm. Maybe he needed to stay stoic to keep his wolf side under control. He couldn't help but remember that werewolf bites supposedly turned you into one. His hand hovered over his healed skin where the bite mark once was. He didn't think Link was actually a werewolf, but… what if he was? Was he going to turn into a wolf, too? How did that even work if he was half-ghost? Would he be one-third human, one-third ghost, one-third wolf, or like, did the wolf part replace the human part, or maybe a werewolf was functionally different and he just would fully become a wolf during a full moon, or—

"Danny!"

The call was accompanied by a snap in his face, which he instinctively smacked away. He almost fell into a fighting stance until he noticed that it was Ashei glaring at him, not a ghost.

"I said we're going to the mountain now," she repeated. "Are you coming?"

He nodded quickly, shooting a glance at the now-empty water behind him. The Zoras were gone.

"Lost in your thoughts?" Link asked good-naturedly.

Danny glared at him and said, "It doesn't matter to you! How about you leave me alone?"

With a huff, he hurried ahead of the swordsman, leaving behind a very confused Ashei and Link. He had to stay focused on what actually mattered: finding the mirror shard so that he could go home and never talk to that stupid werewolf ever again.

oOo

The weather got cold far quicker than Danny thought possible. The weather in Zora's Domain had been pleasant, almost tropical. But as they traversed through a cave that supposedly led to the foot of a mountain called Snowpeak, the way lit only by Ashei and Link's lanterns, he could feel the temperature dropping dramatically. It didn't bother Danny—cold temperatures were perfectly fine for someone with an ice core—but he noticed Link shivering. Ashei, however, seemed just as unaffected as he was. He was kind of impressed.

Halfway through the cave, Ashei had stopped them. "It will only get more cold from here out," Ashei said. She ignored Link's miserable expression in response to those words. "So we need warmer clothes, yeah?"

Ashei reached into her pack and withdrew large bundles of what appeared to be fur. Link accepted one of the articles, and as he threw it over his head it was revealed to be a thick fur cloak. It only reached to his waist, but the fuzzy white exterior made it look heavily insulated. She then gave him several other winter clothes, such as scarves and mittens and even creepy-looking fur masks with huge eye sockets that she explained were meant for use in heavy snow.

While Link bundled up as much as possible, Ashei pulled a single fur coat over her head and then offered one to Danny. He accepted one for appearance's sake, but a single glance at Link did bring an unexpected wave of sympathy. He pushed away the other layers and boots that she had. "I think he needs them more than me," Danny said, jerking a thumb toward Link.

Ashei raised an eyebrow, but turned toward Link without protest. It seemed that Link wasn't used to the cold in human form, Danny thought. Maybe his wolf form would keep him warmer?

Link smiled at Danny gratefully as he strapped on the warm pair of boots. "Thank you."

Danny almost smiled back... and then remembered that this was the same wolf man that was collecting ghost souls.

"Well, I mean, yeah. You obviously needed them," Danny added quickly. "Because… 'cause you look like you've never felt cold in your life. Like, geez, ever seen snow?" Danny spun and scowled at the wall so he didn't have to look at Link's now-confused expression.

"He's from the southern province," Ashei said, sounding amused. "They don't even get a dusting of snow down there." She turned to Danny. "And you? You're handling the chill. Lots of snow where you're from, yeah? Or… does this have to do with what you did at the bar the other day?"

Noticing Link perking up in curiosity, Danny winced, knowing she was definitely referring to the ice he made. "You… you said you wouldn't mention that! And I mean… how about you? You're fine too!"

"I grew up here," Ashei said with an offhanded shrug.

Danny petulantly crossed his arms. "Well… let's just say I have some friends in places even colder than this."

Ashei raised an eyebrow, but thankfully she did not press him.

"What did he do?" Link asked.

Ashei spared Danny a glance, who was still glowering angrily at the frost-covered wall, away from Link. She turned back to the Hylian and shook her head. "Nothing. Let's go; we need to get to the base of the mountain before sunset."

After a solid twenty minutes of walking, they emerged from the cave. Danny had to blink furiously to adjust to the sudden brightness, although it didn't take nearly as long as he expected. The sun was covered in heavy clouds, blotting out much of the light.

They appeared to be on a cliff overlooking a small valley. A half-frozen pond stretched before them with patches of ice floating on its surface. On the other side of the pond was the beginnings of a slope which was undoubtedly the base of the famous mountain itself. Unfortunately, he couldn't make out anything beyond that; even with his improved eyesight, the snowflakes beginning to stir made vision difficult. A blizzard seemed to be brewing.

Ashei trudged through the ankle-high snow and dropped her supply bag by the edge of the cliff. "We will set up camp here for a few days," Ashei explained. "The Zoras said that the beast always appears from here. This is the only entrance to the domain from Snowpeak, so if it tries to sneak in again we are sure to notice it."

"Wait… we're just going to sit here? For days?" Danny exclaimed. "I thought we were going up the mountain."

Ashei regarded him flatly. "If you want to go, then go. But between the out-of-season blizzards and the vastness of Snowpeak, we will not find anything without a lead. We'd best wait for this monster to come to us."

"Boring..." Danny grumbled. He looked back out over the icy pond. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Link extinguishing his lantern to set down his own supplies, apparently accepting Ashei's decision. "And what about you?" Danny huffed. "Didn't you have some mirror shard you were looking for? How are you supposed to find it sitting here?"

Link paused, glancing up at him. "The mirror is cursed and known to create odd creatures," Link said matter-of-factly. "I believe if I find the beast, I'll find the shard."

"Ugh." Danny rolled his eyes and leaned against the cave's outer wall. He stared up at the darkening sky. He hated just sitting still. There were so many things he could be doing right now to try and get home. Waiting for a monster that might not even exist was not at the top of his list.

With a sigh, he looked back down at Ashei and Link, who were setting up a small campsite. He frowned as Link took the sheath off of his back and leaned it against the cave wall. It had an intricate pattern on the hilt, and though Danny was no expert in swords, it looked like a really ornamental weapon, not the kind typically used in battle. He almost wanted to ask about it—but, well, he was still not interested in talking to him.

However… it was possible that Link had some information that Danny did not. After all, Link was supposedly after the very same mirror at Arbiter's Grounds as him. He knew where its pieces were, and he knew how to fix it. Even if Danny didn't really want to make friends, maybe he could learn something?

"Soooo… uh, Link," Danny began, trying to sound casual, "why do you want that mirror, anyway?"

Link looked back up at him. "It's… for a friend," Link said evasively.

"A friend?"

"And," Link continued, completely ignoring Danny's obvious prodding, "I think it might help us get inside Hyrule Castle to Princess Zelda."

"What?" Danny gasped. Ashei stood at the same time, regarding Link with an intense stare.

"You did not mention that before," she said accusingly. "The Resistance would have put more resources into hunting these pieces."

Link shrugged. "I didn't want anyone else to go after them," he admitted. "It's dangerous. I'm the only one experienced with this type of magic."

"How can it get you into the castle?" Danny demanded, his heart beating. This was great news. Even if the mirror turned out to not be what he needed to go home, it might be able to help him get to the person who could!

Link frowned thoughtfully, clearly considering his words carefully. Danny couldn't help but feel another surge of annoyance; he had so many stupid secrets. "The sorcerer who created the barrier is in the realm behind the mirror," Link finally answered. "If I can get to him…"

That made Danny pause. "Is the sorcerer a ghost?"

Link blinked. "…No?"

"But the mirror leads to the underworld. Right?" Danny realized that Link was giving him a weird look, which led to a rush of self-consciousness. "What?" Danny snapped, hating that this man was managing to make him feel embarrassed. "That's what Rusl said!"

Link shook his head. "The mirror goes to another dimension, but… it's not the afterlife. At least… I don't think it is. I might have to ask…" Link's voice trailed off.

Danny took in a deep breath. There was no way he was going to be discouraged. That Stalfos had mentioned a mirror, and then he'd conveniently come across a mirror that was linked to the world of the dead. It had to lead to the Ghost Zone. Besides, what did Link know about ghosts?

…Aside from how to tear out their core and destroy their very being…

Danny shivered. He absently kicked some snow, disturbing an otherwise untouched pile that had amassed near the entrance to the cave. "Whatever," he said. "If we're staying here, I'm going to stake out the area a bit."

If he was really lucky, he might even be able to find the mirror piece just by flying around. Then he could be certain that it would stay out of Link's hands. If the mirror did lead to the Ghost Zone, he really didn't think giving Link an entrance to it was a great idea.

He trudged through the deep snow over to the right side of the cliff. It was slightly less steep here, with many flat rocks that jutted out. It still wouldn't be an easy climb, but Danny was confident he could handle it.

So, of course, on his first step toward the ledge, the snow beneath him shifted. Yelping in surprise, his arms pinwheeled—but the ground collapsed beneath him, and he fell flat on his back with an "oof".

With a groan of embarrassment rather than pain (the snow had softened his fall significantly), he glanced back at Ashei and Link behind him.

Both were watching with thinly veiled amusement. "Of course," Ashei said with a smirk. "Just don't go out in the blizzard or you'll get lost, yeah?"

Growling in frustration, Danny picked himself back up and hurried down the side of the cliff as casually as possible—albeit much more carefully this time.

As soon as he was out of sight, he transformed and invisibly flew above the frozen pond. However, as he tried to make his way up the mountain, the storm became more and more unbearable. The snow grew thick, and the wind buffeted him so much that he had to become intangible just to stay in the air.

Eventually, it became obvious that exploring would not be nearly as straight-forward as he'd hoped. He couldn't see anything in snow this thick. For a while, he wasn't even sure he'd be able to make it back to camp— but he somehow managed. He'd made a full loop.

He landed on the frozen ground, staring frustratedly at the hidden edge of the mountain. He couldn't think of any way to truly get through it.

Danny's powers could do a lot, but they did not give him X-ray vision.

He was just about to give up and go back to the camp when an odd shadow in the distance caught his attention. He'd come across a couple of rocks or trees or other formations along the way, but the way this one looked… it was moving.

And it was getting closer. And much, much, much bigger.

Danny quickly turned invisible, panicking as the figure began to resemble a form that towered larger than even his father (which was saying a lot). As it emerged from the flakes and approached, he could see its white-gray fur and a gray face featuring sharp teeth.

Danny inhaled sharply. The creature seemed to pause and look around in surprise, but Danny paid it no mind, confident that his invisibility would conceal his presence as long as he stayed still.

It's a yeti! His thoughts were immediately drawn to the people of the Far Frozen. Sure, this guy looked a little different—he lacked the icy horns on the top of his head, and its toes and fingers seemed to be gray skin instead of furry—but there was no denying it! He'd just never seen an alive yeti before. He wondered if this guy had ice powers, too.

(Danny felt his stomach lurch painfully as he thought of Frostbite, a feeling of dread caught in the back of his throat—did Frostbite know he was gone? Would he help look for him? Could Frostbite use the Infi-Map to locate him, maybe? If he could, why hadn't he yet? Frostbite would try to help find him, right? Unless Sam and Tucker hadn't thought to tell him. Maybe he would have to be here all alone forever, and maybe this stupid mirror was just a fake thing that the Stalfos had made up, and maybe he would never see Frostbite or his family or his friends or his town or anything ever again because if all of his genius, powerful ghost allies hadn't been able to get to him yet, after more than a week stuck in another dimension, how could he really be so stupid as to think he could ever go home—)

The yeti stepped forward, and Danny only had a split second to turn intangible before its enormous form bowled him right over. The lumbering creature stepped through him toward the frozen lake.

Danny clenched his fists and squeezed his eyes shut, trying to get his rapid breathing under control. (And when had that happened? Was he seriously panicking right now? Ancients, he was so stupid, it was one yeti that didn't even look like Frostbite and he was falling apart. He needed to stop, he didn't even need to breathe when he was a ghost—)

He growled lowly to himself and forced his eyes open. He didn't have time for this. He had a job to do.

Chances were, the yeti was the creature stealing the fish from the Zoras. Danny had no idea why the yeti would need to do that since it was huge and could probably take out most creatures with its bare hands, but Danny saw no other option.

And if that was true, then the best thing for him to do now was follow it.

oOo

Link watched as the boy who was supposedly a mage (or not, if Midna was right) left them. When his retreating form vanished below the cliff's edge, Link turned to Ashei. "I think he doesn't like me."

"Yeah." Ashei crossed her arms. "What'd you do?"

"Do?" Link repeated incredulously. "I've barely spoken to him. I asked him to show me magic when we met and he's been angry at me ever since."

Ashei shrugged. "Maybe he holds grudges. I wouldn't know."

Link's mind drifted back to Midna's words from the other day. How she was fairly certain he wasn't a mage, or at least not of the Hyrulian variety. How his magic instead resembled that of the Twili, and therefore of their ancestors the Dark Interlopers…

"How long have you even known him?" Link asked, though he really wanted to ask Can he be trusted?

She sighed. "Not long, but Telma and Shad seem to like him. He did save Telma from a Shadow Beast, supposedly." Ashei uncrossed her arms, leaning instead against the rock wall behind her. "He's secretive. He's hiding something. If I'm being honest, I invited him on this trip so that I could try and figure him out."

Link shifted, sitting down on a blanket that Ashei had laid out. "But… have you seen him actually do any magic?"

She pursed her lips, looking oddly uncomfortable at the question. "I have seen him use some magical abilities. But they were… not what I was expecting."

The pit of worry in Link's stomach grew. "Like what?"

She clenched her fists. "I promised him I wouldn't say. But according to Auru, he managed to heal an injury within a day, and he's been able to travel around the country quickly, much like yourself. Those are odd things for a mage to do, yeah? Even odder without any obvious spells being cast."

Link considered what little he'd heard of mages. Magic was primarily relegated to children's stories or history books, since it was so rare. But now he knew a mage personally, and Midna could teleport across the country, albeit with limited results. Unfortunately, the fact that Danny was showing a Twili ability was not particularly reassuring. Link glanced at his shadow. Did this boy have a Twili assisting him, too? One Midna couldn't detect?

Link had just opened his mouth to reply—but an unusual crunching sound caught his attention.

"What was that?" he asked.

Ashei stood straighter. "I didn't hear anything."

Another sound. There was no denying it this time; it was the crunch of a foot in the snow. From the way Ashei's eyes narrowed, she clearly heard it this time too. "Is Danny back already?" she wondered aloud. She slowly made her way to the edge of the cliff—and inhaled sharply. "Link," she hissed. "Come look at this."

Link grabbed his sheath and rushed to her side. Sure enough, there was a giant creature, easily as tall as the stable at Ordon Ranch. Its mass was enormous and it appeared to be covered in thick white fur with palms the size of Deku Sprouts. A thick tail trailed in the snow behind it. It blended in with the blizzard, making it impossible to make out further features. It was standing directly in front of the frozen lake, apparently having just crossed it, and what had to be its head was clearly scanning the area.

It… kind of looked like Ashei's snow mask, actually.

"That must be the beast stealing the Zoras' fish," Ashei murmured.

"What do we do?" Link said, placing a hand on his hilt. "Do we fight it?"

"No," she said. "We need to be certain that this creature truly is the monster we seek."

Link frowned and took a step back. "I'm going to try getting closer."

Ashei turned toward him, a skeptical expression on her face, but Link ignored her, choosing to scale down the cliffside as quietly as he could manage. It was tough; the ground was clearly uneven, with many ledges jutting out and rocks hidden underneath the thick snowy layer. He had to place his steps carefully. Nonetheless, he managed to get closer and closer to the bottom—

And then… he slipped.

A large pile of snow collapsed under his weight, proving that it wasn't fully supported. He fell, much like Danny had earlier, and the snow made a soft thump onto the ground below, freezing snow finding a way into his clothing.

It wasn't a loud noise—but it was enough to get the creature's attention.

The monster's head turned up toward him. It froze; Link froze. He caught just a glimpse of blackened eyes, glinting as they locked gazes.

And then it turned and fled.

"After it!" Ashei cried from the top. Link scurried to try and follow through, but the snow was just as thick at the bottom as at the top. The creature, despite its lumbering size, seemed to have an advantage with its large legs allowing it to make big steps. The snow wasn't even deep enough to reach its ankles. It began hopping across the frozen icebergs with practiced skill and was already across by the time Link made it to the water's edge.

Link started following it, even as its form disappeared. He reached the other side of the lake, staring into the snow; he could see almost nothing over here, not even the cliff on which he'd left Ashei. But he had to keep going, he had to follow the monster—

And then a hand suddenly whipped out into his chest, stopping him dead in his tracks.

Link let out an oof as he was stopped by surprising force. He scowled, unsheathing his sword—but then he looked up and found angry blue eyes staring at him.

"Why did you do that?" Danny growled at him. "I had it under control!"

Link blinked. When did he get there? "What?"

"I was following him!" Danny shouted angrily. "I was totally gonna see where he went—but you scared him back into the blizzard and now there's no way either of us is gonna be able to find him or the mirror!"

Link frowned, glancing around. He was quite certain he would have noticed Danny; sure, the blizzard made it hard to see, but Danny's dark hair made him stick out like a Goron at Zora's River. The area was way too open for Link to have missed him. "Where did you come from?"

"I… It doesn't matter!" Danny hissed. "You… I… ugh!" Danny stomped in the snow in frustration, sending a plume of white over the boots he borrowed from Ashei. "Whatever! You guys invited me along to help but you ruined it! I give up!" Danny began stalking away, back toward the lake. "Just… don't go out in the blizzard. You won't be able to see anything out there. And as much as you probably deserve it, it'd be a pain if you got lost and died."

As Danny's form disappeared into the blizzard, Link was left behind, completely at a loss.

"Deserve it?" Link repeated. What in Farore's name had he done to deserve that?

oOo

Danny was livid.

He hadn't even wanted to go here to find this stupid monster, but he had. And when he finally found it, even bothered to follow it invisibly see what it was up to. Even when Link had scared it and it shot off like a rocket, Danny had been ready to follow the monster to wherever it was going.

But then Link, that stupid, stupid wolf-man, had decided it was a good idea to follow the yeti into totally unfamiliar territory in the middle of a raging blizzard with literally no way to keep his sense of direction. He didn't even bring the supplies with him, and he'd been about to rush out into the whiteness!

Danny couldn't leave him. He couldn't. His stupid ghost core wouldn't let him even it he did want this ghost-murdering jerk to die in a blizzard. Which he definitely didn't, despite everything.

So Danny stopped Link from running out to his sure-death. And now the monster was gone, and it knew they were staking out the entrance, and it would probably never come back, and who knew when the blizzard would die down enough for them to search for it!

Danny stomped back up to the top of the cliff where Ashei was waiting. "What happened?" she demanded. "Where's Link?"

"He scared off the stupid yeti," Danny grumbled.

Ashei blinked. "The what?"

Danny ignored her. He really wasn't feeling conversation right now. "I'm gonna go lay down and forget that the world exists," he announced, pulling open the tent.

Ashei grabbed his arm firmly. "No," she said. "You returned, and Link did not. Tell me what happened."

Danny rolled his eyes. "He's fine, as long as he followed my advice. He was gonna try and run out into that blizzard, you know? Like, the exact thing you said not to do?"

Ashei frowned. "But then, where—"

"I'm here," Link's voice called. A moment later they saw him climbing over the cliff ledge back to their camp. Danny felt his eyes threatening to glow just at the sight of him, so he quickly ducked back into the tent.

He doubted he could actually sleep with the thoughts running through his mind… but he definitely didn't want to be out there anymore.

oOo

As the sun disappeared, Danny was left in the pitch-blackness of the tent. Ashei had come to sleep in the tent not too long ago, but Danny was still awake, despite the hour.

And it was because of this that he heard the familiar melodic voice outside. "You can follow that beast, you know."

Danny narrowed his eyes. He knew that tone. Phasing through his sheets so that he made as little sound as possible, he invisibly peeked his head outside the tent, where the moon offered a dim light.

Sure enough, floating in front of Link was the creepy imp lady who he'd seen every time Link was a wolf. Danny fought back the urge to groan. He had no idea where she could have possibly come from, since she definitely hadn't been along with them when they were travelling yesterday.

Unless, despite the lack of a ghost sense, she was a ghost and could turn invisible. (Serious possibility. She was floating!)

"How, Midna?" Link replied to the imp's previous question. Midna. Danny tried to store that name away for future reference.

The imp laughed. "You can turn into a wolf! Or did you forget?"

"And that will help… how?"

She sighed dramatically. "Do I have to spell out everything for you? You can smell it. Its scent is probably still on the icebergs. Or you could always catch one of those fish it was stealing and follow that scent."

Link's eyes widened. "I… hadn't thought of that."

"And that's why you need me around!" Midna giggled, bopping Link playfully on the head. The Hylian man rolled his eyes but simply stood up.

"We'd better go now then," Link said. "Ashei and Danny can't come with us. It's not like we can tell them about turning into a wolf and you and… well, everything."

Danny watched as Midna materialized a strange crystal-like orange object out of thin air that floated above her palm. Link reached out, and just like in Arbiter's Grounds, his form shifted in a miasma of dark particles and revealed a wolf. Midna hopped cheerfully on his back.

"Well, better get going, wolf-boy!" she said, kicking his sides. Link released a wolfish huff but began sprinting gracefully through the snow down the cliff.

Danny phased fully through the tent and glared at Link's retreating form as he transformed.

There was no way they were leaving without him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That language part with Shad was like 3 paragraphs longer originally. Would anyone be interested in a side oneshot of Danny learning Hylian? (Maybe some other bonding scenes with Resistance members too, idk)
> 
> Thanks to [aniura](https://archiveofourown.org/users/aniura/pseuds/aniura), [Hazama_d20](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hazama_d20/pseuds/Hazama_d20), and [Fordtato](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fordtato/pseuds/Fordtato) as always for betaing.
> 
> Love you all!


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